Boating Waters |
Critical Area |
Main Basin |
Seafood |
Water Frontage |
Watershed |
Skipjack H. M. Krentz, St. Michaels, Maryland, February 2005. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Native Americans living along its shores gave the Bay an Algonquin name. Chesepiook, meaning "great shellfish bay," was used to signify the abundance of Bay crabs, oysters, and clams. The Bay was the site of the first English settlement in Maryland and later saw the Civil War confrontation between the iron-clad Confederate Merrimac and the Union's Monitor in 1862. Generations of watermen have made their living harvesting the bounty of the Bay, while recreational fishing, hunting, and boating attract millions of people each year and contribute significantly to Maryland's economy. Major annual seafood harvests include millions of bushels of crabs, oysters, clams, and eels.
Skipjacks under sail. Photo by Chuck Prahl.
Three Maryland agencies bear particular responsibility for Bay matters. The Department of Agriculture directs the Office of Resource Conservation which oversees Chesapeake Bay Agricultural Programs. The Department of the Environment works on behalf of the Bay through its Technical and Regulatory Services Administration. The Department of Natural Resources supports the work of the Critical Area Commission for the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays (formerly Chesapeake Bay Critical Area Commission) and oversees Chesapeake Bay Programs.
Seagull at pier, Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, December 2002. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Information about the Bay, including its history and effect on regional culture, may be found at the Chesapeake Bay Information Center, maintained by the Department of Natural Resources, and at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.
? Copyright Maryland State Archives
WATER FRONTAGE
WATERSHED
MAIN BASIN
AREA
Maryland
1,726 square miles
Virginia
1,511 square miles
LENGTH
195 miles
WIDTH
(widest near Cape Charles, Virginia)
30 miles
(narrowest at Annapolis)
4 miles
SHORELINE
4,600 miles
DEPTH
average
25 feet
greatest (southeast of Annapolis)
174 feet
TIDAL RANGE
at Annapolis
1 foot
at head
2 feet
at mouth
3 feet
VOLUME
18 trillion gallons
SURFACE SALINITY
(parts per thousand)
at mouth
30 ppt
midway to head
15 ppt
above fall line
00 ppt
surface to bottom
2-3 ppt
Chesapeake Bay Commission
Chesapeake Bay Critical Area Commission
Chesapeake Bay Trust
Maryland State Crustacean
Maryland State Fish
Maryland State Reptile
Maryland Constitutional Offices & Agencies
Maryland Departments
Maryland Independent Agencies
Maryland Executive Commissions, Committees, Task Forces, & Advisory Boards
Maryland Universities & Colleges
Maryland Counties
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Maryland at a Glance
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e-mail: mdmanual@mdarchives.state.md.us