Patapsco River

Patapsco River
The River of History
Patapsco River Watershed
Native namePotapskut (Algonquian languages)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMaryland
RegionBaltimore metropolitan area, Patapsco Valley
CitiesBaltimore, Elkridge, Ellicott City
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationMarriottsville
 • coordinates39°20′59″N 76°52′56″W / 39.3498272°N 76.8821987°W / 39.3498272; -76.8821987
 • elevation260 ft (79 m)
MouthChesapeake Bay
 • location
Baltimore
 • coordinates
39°10′25″N 76°26′36″W / 39.1737202°N 76.4432935°W / 39.1737202; -76.4432935
 • elevation
0 ft (0 m)
Length63 км
Basin size950 sq mi (2,460 km2)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftNorth Branch
 • rightSouth Branch
The Inner Harbor viewed from the Baltimore Aquarium
Liberty Reservoir
Volunteers at a community cleanup of Herbert Run, a tributary of the Patapsco River running through Arbutus, Maryland

The Patapsco River (/pəˈtæpˌsk/ pə-TAP-skoh ) mainstem is a 39-mile (63 km)[1] river in central Maryland that flows into the Chesapeake Bay. The river's tidal portion forms the harbor for the city of Baltimore. With its South Branch, the Patapsco forms the northern border of Howard County, Maryland. The name "Patapsco" is derived from the Algonquian pota-psk-ut, which translates to "backwater" or "tide covered with froth".[2]

  1. ^ "The National Map - Advanced Viewer". apps.nationalmap.gov. Retrieved April 5, 2023.
  2. ^ "Ghosts of industrial heyday still haunt Baltimore's harbor, creeks". Chesapeake Bay Journal. Retrieved September 8, 2012.