Description
The Chesapeake Bay is almost 321 km (200 mi) long and 48 km (30 mi) across at its widest point and is located in eastern Maryland and extends south to Virginia before merging with the Atlantic Ocean. The watershed for the Chesapeake Bay drains over 64,000 square miles, over six States with its headwaters in Cooperstown, New York. (US-T121)
History
The Chesapeake Bay is the Nation's largest estuary and is home to over 2700 species of plants and animals. American Indians lived along its banks since 8000 BC and the variant name of "Chesepiooc", meaning "great shelfish bay" was applied to this feature as early as 1585. (US-T121)