Maryland

Maryland is a state of the United States, one of the South Atlantic States (although often considered part of the Mid-Atlantic States and sometimes part of the Northeast). Its U.S. postal abbreviation is MD. Its Associated Press abbreviation is Md. Maryland was one of the thirteen colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution. See: Annapolis Convention.

Geography and climate

Geography

Maryland is bounded on the north by Pennsylvania, on the west by West Virginia, on the east by Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean, and on the south, across the Potomac River, by Virginia. It shares a border near the center of the state along the Potomac with Washington, DC. The Chesapeake Bay nearly bisects the state, and the counties east of the Bay are known collectively as the Eastern Shore. A portion of extreme western Maryland in Garrett County is drained by the Youghiogheny River as part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. The highest point in Maryland is Backbone Mountain, which is the southwest corner of Garrett County, right near the border with West Virginia near the headwaters of the North Branch of the Potomac. Also in Western Maryland, about two-thirds of the way across the state line, is a point at which the state of Maryland is only two miles wide. This geographical curiosity, the "Maryland wasp-waist" is located near the small town of Hancock.

Related Topics:
Pennsylvania - West Virginia - Delaware - Atlantic Ocean - Potomac River - Virginia - Washington, DC - Chesapeake Bay - Garrett County - Youghiogheny River - Mississippi River - Backbone Mountain - Hancock

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• Physical formations
• Appalachian Mountains
• Chesapeake Bay

The Delmarva Peninsula is a geographic term for the Eastern Shore counties of Maryland, the state of Delaware, and two counties of Virginia, which all together form a long extension down the Atlantic seaboard. One of the most noted features of Delmarva is Maryland's Assateague Island, on the Atlantic, with its herd of wild ponies accustomed to the seashore.

Related Topics:
Delmarva Peninsula - Assateague Island

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Climate

Climate varies greatly across the state, depending on factors like elevation, rainfall, and proximity to water. The Eastern Shore region, as well as a small part of the western shore (including Baltimore, Annapolis, and St. Mary's City) are a part of the Atlantic Coastal Plain, which has a humid subtropical climate of hot summers and mild winters. Beyond the plain rise the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, and the Piedmont region has warm summers and colder winters, where snow often falls. Extreme western Maryland has a mountain climate with mild summers and cold winters. Growing climate varies from USDA Zone 8 on the Eastern Shore and in the cities of Baltimore and Washington DC to Zones 7 and 6 is the Piedmont, to Zone 5 in the mountainous west.

Related Topics:
Baltimore - Annapolis - St. Mary's City - Atlantic Coastal Plain - Appalachian Mountains - Piedmont - Baltimore - Washington DC

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