[7]: 331  It was one of the first planned Victorian commuter suburbs,[8] centered on the B&O railroad station in Takoma, D.C., and bore aspects of a spa and trolley park.

[7]: 331  At the time, much of the land was covered by thick forest, some of which was cleared away in order to lay out and grade streets and housing lots.

[18] Gilbert's North Takoma Hotel was built later that year, advertising the pure spring water nearby its 160 rooms.

[24] For many decades Takoma Park served as the world headquarters of the Seventh-day Adventist Church,[25] until it moved to northern Silver Spring in 1989.

In the mid-to-late 1960s, the future mayor and civil rights activist Sammie Abbott led a campaign to halt freeway construction and replace it with a Metrorail line to the site of the former train station, and worked with other neighborhood groups to halt plans for a wider system of freeways going into and out of DC.

[27] This era of activism extended into the 1980s, when Takoma Park declared itself a Nuclear-free zone and a sanctuary for Salvadoran and Guatemalan refugees.

[28] Prior to the passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, restrictive covenants were used in Takoma Park to exclude African Americans, Jews, and others.

A 1939 deed for the New Hampshire Avenue Highlands subdivision of Takoma Park reads: "No lot shall be leased, transferred, sold, occupied or conveyed to or for the use of any person or persons not wholly of Caucasian Race or blood, excluding Semites; but this covenant shall not prevent casual occupancy by domestic servants of a different race, employed by an owner or tenant.

This led to Takoma Park featuring some of the lowest rents in the D.C. region while similarly discouraging new multi-family housing construction, as evidenced by the lack of any new development in the city after the law passed.

[36] The city experienced substantial gentrification in the 1990s and early 2000s (decade), with many houses containing apartments converted back into single-family homes.

This process was encouraged by an M-NCPPC "phase back", effectively eliminating scattered-site multifamily housing and implementing single-use zoning in a majority of city neighborhoods.

Takoma Park is bounded by downtown Silver Spring, a major urban center to the northwest, by Montgomery College campus; East Silver Spring, a community of houses, apartments and small shops, along Flower Avenue and Piney Branch Road, to the north; Langley Park, a community of apartments and shopping centers, along University Boulevard to the northeast; Chillum, in Prince George's County to the southeast, bounded by New Hampshire Avenue, a state highway; and Takoma to the southwest, separated by Eastern Avenue, which follows the District of Columbia line.

Other town centers include: "Takoma Junction", the corner of Carroll Avenue and Route 410 in the geographic center of town, home to the city's large food co-op; Takoma-Langley Crossroads in downtown Langley Park, and the Flower shopping district, both of which are home to many immigrant-owned establishments.

[50] Takoma Park is notable for being the home of blues guitarist John Fahey, who (together with other local music institutions) popularized the city as a haven for folk musicians.

Mary Chapin Carpenter, Al Petteway (composer of Sligo Creek) and many other prominent local and national artists have made their home in and around Takoma Park.

[53] Takoma Park has been home to a variety of local characters who have contributed to the city's sense of identity and culture, including "Catman" and Motor Cat,[54] Roscoe the Rooster,[55] The Banjo Man,[56] and "Fox Man",[57] a local animal rights activist and founder of the city's Tool Library.

The Sam Abbott Citizens Center, Takoma Park's former city auditorium, has been refurbished as a community theater and gallery.

A gymnasium was requested by the city's youth sports leagues after lobbying from Steve Francis, the NBA basketball player, who grew up in Takoma Park; but funding was not identified.

This had followed an effort by county officials to close or relocate the city's fire station, located on the side of a steep hill.

In the 1970s, the city experienced controversy over plans to expand or relocate Montgomery College, which has a campus located in the historic district of North Takoma, an area of large old homes adjacent to downtown Silver Spring.

This debate was subsequently resolved when the County agreed to preserve the existing campus, and expand in the direction of downtown Silver Spring by building a bridge across the B&O railroad tracks.

The expanded campus included a major new arts center located in South Silver Spring, near the boundary between the three jurisdictions.

[citation needed] Takoma Park's electorate and its elected officials are known for their liberal and left-of-liberal values, which have led to the enactment of several municipal laws.

[5] The city was also forbidden, by statute, from doing business with any entity having commercial ties with the government of Burma (Myanmar),[65] though after a U.S. Supreme Court decision struck down a similar Massachusetts law, enforcement of the provision was suspended in the year 2000.

[71] Under a local ordinance, Takoma Park residents must obtain a permit or waiver from the City arborist ("urban forest manager") to cut down any tree on their property with a diameter of 7 5/8 inches or greater.

With the Downcounty Consortium, students have limited opportunity to enroll in one of four other schools, including Kennedy, Northwood, Einstein, and Wheaton.

Prior to the mid-1990s sections of the Takoma Park census-designated place were zoned to Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS).

Maryland Route 193 (University Boulevard) serves as the major suburban shopping strip, skirting the city on its northeast edge.

The Takoma Langley Crossroads Transit Center is situated just outside the city border, at the intersection of University Boulevard and New Hampshire Avenue, also a location for a future Purple Line station.

The 9-mile (14 km) Sligo Creek Trail is used for recreation by bicyclists and pedestrians, and much of the roadway segment within the City of Takoma Park is closed to motor vehicles Fridays through Sundays.