Maryland

The state

Get to know Maryland

Maryland surrounds the Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States, and stretches from the Appalachian Mountains in the west to the Atlantic beaches in the east. It nearly encircles the city of Washington, and many visitors to the capital pass through the state without noticing.

Baltimore, the largest city, has the Inner Harbor, a revitalized port with the National Aquarium and historic ships, the waterfront neighborhoods of Fells Point and Federal Hill, and Fort McHenry, where, during the British attack of 1814, the poem that became the U.S. national anthem was written. The Baltimore Museum of Art and the Walters Art Museum round out a visit.

Annapolis, the capital, is a colonial town of brick streets on the bay, with the state's oldest capitol still in use in the country and the United States Naval Academy, open to visitors. Across the bay bridge, the Eastern Shore has flat farmland and fishing villages like St. Michaels.

On the Atlantic coast, Ocean City offers a beach and wooden boardwalk, and Assateague Island, shared with Virginia, is known for the wild horses that roam the dunes. To the west, the C&O Canal has a trail along the Potomac River, and the Antietam battlefield near Sharpsburg recalls the Civil War. At the table, steamed blue crab seasoned with celery and paprika, served on paper at the table, and the crab cake.