The first European settlers to arrive in the vicinity of Sabillasville were Swiss immigrants in the late-1750s.[6] Among the earliest settlers was Peter Zollinger (or Zullinger), who owned the land on which the present-day village is located. In 1813, the village was laid out by Andrew Smith and named Sabillasville in honor of Savilla Zollinger (wife of Peter).[7] In 1872, the Western Maryland Railroad reached Sabillasville on its line leading from Baltimore to Hagerstown and the surrounding area soon developed into a summer resort called Pen Mar (a portmanteau of Pennsylvania and Maryland).[8]
Geography
The town is located in the northwest corner of Frederick County at an elevation of 1,100 feet (340 m) above sea level, in the Harbaugh Valley, between South Mountain to the northwest and Wertenbaker Hill to the southeast. Route 550 passes through the town, leading northwest 2 miles (3 km) to Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania, and southeast 7 miles (11 km) to Thurmont.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Sabillasville CDP has an area of 1.5 square miles (3.9 km2), all land.[4]