"The hundred was an old division of an English county dating from Anglo-Saxon times. The origin of the term is lost in antiquity, but it probably received its name from the organization around royal estates of districts rated at a hundred taxable units. Through the centuries the hundred came to be used not only for tax purposes, but also for the administration of matters of justice, law, police and military defense. Since it was natural for the colonizers of Maryland to bring with them the plan of government to which they had been accustomed in England, it is not surprising to find hundreds mentioned in the early provincial records as divisions of the first county."
"The hundreds...were laid out by the justices of the
county court, and were of whatever size these officials deemed
proper and convenient. These hundreds remained under the control
of the county officers; they...were units designed to make
political administration within the county more efficient."
Excerpts & map from Prince George's Heritage, by Louise Joyner Hienton, Chapt. 4, The Maryland Historical Society, 1972. Additional labels have been added to the map for purposes of clarity.