Copyright © Bay Area Networking * All Rights Reserved
Adkins Arboretum, Ridgley, MD
Adkins Arboretum is a 400-acre native garden and preserve on Maryland’s Eastern Shore dedicated to promoting the appreciation and conservation of the region’s native plants. Four miles of paths along streams, through meadows and native plant gardens and under the shade of a rich bottomland forest attract nature lovers, gardeners, students and birders.
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Dorchester County, MD
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge is located on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, approximately 12 miles south of the town of Cambridge, in Dorchester County. The Refuge includes over 27,000 acres, composed mainly of rich tidal marsh characterized by fluctuating water levels and varying salinity. Other habitat types include freshwater ponds, mixed evergreen and deciduous forests, and small amounts of cropland and managed impoundments that are seasonally flooded for waterfowl use.
Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail
Friends of the John Smith Trail
The John Smith Chesapeake is the first National Historic Trail to follow a route on water. The historic routes cover approximately 3000 miles of the Bay and its tributaries, and they may be accessed from hundreds of points throughout Virginia, Maryland and Delaware.
Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center, Grasonville, MD
The mission of the Wildfowl Trust of North America, Inc. is to be responsible and proactive environmentally. We strive to improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay. Specifically, we promote environmental stewardship at our 510-acre site, the Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center, through education, restoration and conservation.
Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, St. Micahels, MD
The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering an understanding of the culture and history of the Chesapeake Bay. Since its founding in 1965, the Museum has grown through the support of volunteers, staff, and members.
Choptank River Heritage Center & Joppa Wharf Museum, Denton, MD
The Choptank River Heritage Center (CRHC) is located in a historic schooner and steamboat warehouse at the restored Joppa Steamboat Wharf on the upper Choptank River in West Denton, Maryland. It is the Center’s mission to preserve and interpret the evolution and development of the land, its inhabitants and their interrelationship with the Eastern Shore’s noblest river (the Great Choptank River). The Center promotes understanding, appreciation, and experiences that interpret the riverine history of the Choptank River, as it relates to the agricultural and cultural development within the Eastern Shore’s longest river system, through research, programs, exhibits and publications.
Dorchester County Historical Society, Cambridge, MD
The Dorchester County Historical Society is a private, nonprofit, organization dedicated to the collection, preservation, maintenance, exhibit, and making available for research: artifacts, documents and other items relative to the history of Dorchester County. The Dorchester County Historical Society was founded in 1953 to promote an appreciation of Dorchester County history. The Society strives to fulfill this goal by collecting artifacts, operating museums, maintaining an archive, and by advocating the preservation of other historic resources in the County. Many educational program meetings are held throughout the year at which guests speak on topics related to the local and regional history.
Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Rock Hall, MD
Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, located at the confluence of the Chester River and the Chesapeake Bay on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. This 2,285-acre island refuge is a major feeding and resting place for migrating and wintering waterfowl. More than 100,000 ducks, geese and swans seek sanctuary here each year, as do migrating and breeding songbirds and shorebirds, and bald eagles that thrive here year-round. Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge provides a variety of recreational opportunities for all ages. Nearly six miles of trails and roads, including universally-accessible boardwalks and a waterside trail, are open to visitors most of the year, providing excellent wildlife viewing and spectacular Chesapeake Bay vistas. Facilities for boating, fishing, and crabbing are also available.
Eastern Shore Baseball Hall of Fame Museum, Salisbury, MD
The Delmarva Shorebirds Embrace the Rich History of Baseball on the Eastern Shore with ‘The Eastern Shore Baseball Hall of Fame Museum.’ Within its Doors Hold the Story of Hundreds of Men, All of Whom Had a Part to Play in The Eastern Shore’s Baseball Past. Come celebrate our Love for Players Past and Present by Stopping in the Museum Next Time You’re at a Delmarva Shorebirds Baseball Game. The Hall of Fame Museum opened on May 24, 1997 and is dedicated to the history, preservation, and recognition of amateur, semi-pro, and professional baseball as it was played in the years past on the Delmarva Peninsula.
Historical Society of Talbot County, Easton, MD
The Historical Society of Talbot County was founded in 1954 to preserve and celebrate the history and culture of Talbot County, Maryland. The Historical Society is deeply dedicated to becoming a force for heritage preservation while also offering the entire community a wide range of opportunities to learn about our rich Talbot County history. From exhibits to educational programs, special events to research opportunities, the Historical Society is the leading resource for discovering Talbot County's past.
J. Millard Tawes Historical Museum and Ward Brothers Workshop, Crisfeild, MD
The J. Millard Tawes Historical Museum is located along the waterfront of Crisfield, Maryland. The museum traces the history of the lower Eastern Shore with exhibits on the beginnings of the Chesapeake Bay, the influence of Native Americans on the early colonists, seafood harvesting and processing, the history of Crisfield, and the evolution of that truly American art form, decoy carving and painting.
Martinak State Park, Denton, MD
Martinak State Park sits along the Choptank River, the largest of the Eastern Shore tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay. The park supports a wide variety of plant and animal life. Hardwood and pine forests surround the park, which offers modern campsites and boating access. Martinak is a haven for bird watchers, who must choose to walk the park's abundant hiking trails or paddle the waterways via canoe.
Museum of Eastern Shore Life, Centreville, MD
The mission of the Museum is to promote a greater understanding and appreciation of the region's cultural and natural heritage, with an emphasis on agricultural and maritime activities.
Pemberton Park, Salisbury, MD
Pemberton Park is located on Pemberton Drive on the west side of Salisbury, just a short distance from Route 50. The park's 262 acres offers the opportunity to hike 4.5 miles of natural trails, appreciate the beauty of nature and participate in environmental education, historical interpretation or special event activities.
Phillips Wharf Environmental Center, Tilghman Island, MD
Phillips Wharf Environmental Center leads the journey to discover the secret lives of Bay Creatures.
Pickering Creek Audubon Center, Easton, MD
Pickering Creek Audubon Center is a 400-acre working farm on the Eastern Shore of Maryland situated next to the tidal Pickering Creek in Talbot County, Maryland. The Center’s property features a variety of habitats including mature hardwood forest, fresh and brackish marsh, meadow, tidal and non-tidal wetlands, over a mile of shoreline on a tidal creek, and cropland. Two hundred and seventy acres are devoted to low impact “best management practice” agriculture. The farmed acreage of Pickering Creek is its link to the significant farming heritage of the Eastern Shore of Maryland.
Purnell Museum, Salisbury, MD
The mission of the Purnell Museum is to acquire, conserve and display artifacts, and to interpret the history of Worcester County through exhibits and programs in order to promote the cultural heritage of the region.
Richardson Maritime Museum, Cambridge, MD
The Richardson Maritime Museum makes this history come alive for visitors in the form of exquisite models of these traditional vessels. Some were built as replicas by local modelers, while others were crafted by the boatbuilders themselves. All contain a wealth of minute details that will leave visitors awestruck at the craftsmen's skill, while imparting an appreciation for the grace and beauty of these traditional Bay boats. The Museum also offers a collection of boatbuilders' tools and watermen's artifacts that convey an understanding of how the boats were constructed and the history of their use. This history is not ancient. Aerial photographs in the Museum's collection, taken in the 1930s, show Cambridge Creek bustling with bugeyes, buyboats, skipjacks and schooners, even as steamboats tie up at the old ferry terminal at Long Wharf.
Salisbury Zoo & Park, Salisbury, MD
The Salisbury Zoo, located in Salisbury, Maryland, was officially born in 1954 when some animals were placed on permanent exhibition in the City Park. The zoo's present form resulted from improvements made in the 1970's. The zoo now provides naturalistic enclosures for species native to North, Central and South America and is Association of Zoos & Aquariums accredited. The zoo's policy is maintained by the Salisbury Zoo Commission, Inc. whose nine members are appointed by the City Council.
Skipjack Rebecca T. Ruark, Tilghman, MD
A National Historic Landmark, sail aboard the oldest working skipjack on the Chesapeake Bay, built in 1886. Enjoy nautical tales and ecology stories from 5th-generation and world-renown Capt. Wade H. Murphy, Jr.
Sultana Center, Chestertown, MD
The Sultana Center at Cross Street is Sultana Projects' dedicated educational space in Chestertown. Featuring a variety of hands-on exhibits, including a brackish water aquarium system, the center welcomes visiting school groups, tour groups, families and the general public.
Terrapin Nature Park, Stevensville, MD
This award-winning 276-acre nature park features a 3.25-mile oyster chaff walking trail, which meanders through wildflower meadows, wetlands, tidal ponds, woodlands and sandy beaches. The trail provides a unique vantage point for viewing an incredible variety of waterfowl, wildlife and plant species. A gazebo and wheelchair-accessible boardwalk, located along the beach afford a spectacular view of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and park benches located along the trail provides a brief respite for the weary. The trail, which wanders over several ridges, across marshlands and through woodlands, features two observation blinds overlooking the tidal ponds. The trail connects to the County's Cross Island Trail system. The park is located at 191 Log Canoe Circle, Stevensville, MD 21666.
Tuckahoe State Park, Queen Anne, MD
Tuckahoe Creek, a quiet country stream bordered for most of its length by wooded marshlands, runs through the length of the park. A 60-acre lake offers boating and fishing. The park offers 20 miles of scenic hiking, biking and equestrian trails, flat water canoeing, hunting, picnicking, as well as a recycled tire playground for children. The park offers activities and special events on a seasonal basis. Activities include day camps, canoe trips, Scales & Tales presentations and displays, and Challenge Course programs. Each weekend, Memorial Day through Labor Day, park staff offer a number of free family activities.
Turner’s Creek Park, Kennedyville, MD
This 147 acre park, established in September, 1972, is on Turner's Creek, an arm of the Sassafras River, which in turn feeds into the Chesapeake Bay. Explore nature trails, wooded areas, open fields and a waterfront bluff overlooking Turner's Creek.
Underground Railroad, Dorchester & Caroline Counties, MD
The Underground Railroad Scenic Byway, established by the Maryland State Highway Administration, highlights the life of Harriet Tubman and many historic places connected with her. From Dorchester County and scenes of her early life, you can follow the trail north through Caroline County, where many Maryland free blacks and white abolitionists supported the cause of freedom.
Ward Museum of Waterfowl Art, Salisbury, MD
The most comprehensive collection of wildfowl carving in the world invites you to explore this unique, indigenous North American art form from antique working decoys to internationally acclaimed contemporary sculpture and painting.
Waterman’s Museum, Rock Hall, MD
The concept for the Waterman's Museum began in 1990, when a committee of representatives from the Rock Hall community and Haven Harbour Marina decided that the watermen needed their own unique center of recorded history. Today the museum includes exhibits on oystering, crabbing, and fishing. A reproduction of a shanty house is on display, along with historical photographs, local carvings, and of course, boats.
Wye Grist Mill, Wye Mills, MD
The Wye Grist Mill was constructed in 1682 at the headwaters of the Wye East River. Today it is the oldest working mill in Maryland. The community of Wye Mills was established around the mill, reflecting a time when the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers - not roads - were the main transportation routes. The mill ground flour for local plantation owners and farmers, but the bulk of products were shipped along the Wye River and Chesapeake Bay to the cities of Baltimore and Philadelphia, and ultimately to Europe. During the American Revolution, the mill shipped flour up the Bay to General George Washington's Continental Army warehouses near the Elk River. For more information about Wye Grist Mill call (410) 827-6909.
Wye Island National Resources Management Area, Queenstown, MD
Wye Island NRMA is located in the tidal recesses of the Chesapeake Bay between the Wye River and the Wye East River. Of Wye Island's 2,800 acres, 2,450 are managed by the Department of Natural Resources Maryland Park Service for agricultural and resource management. A major emphasis at Wye Island is to provide suitable habitat for wintering waterfowl populations and other native wildlife. A primary resource management objective at Wye Island is the stabilization of the 30 miles of ever-eroding shoreline. These efforts are accomplished through a partnership between DNR and numerous environmental advocacy groups, such as the Chesapeake Bay Trust and the USDA-RC&D Council. Service learning opportunities abound at Wye Island.