Chesapeake Bay

Original, hand-drawn story map and accompanying gifts of Chesapeake Bay by renowned Illustrator and Xplorer Maps Co-Founder, Chris Robitaille.

The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary (where salt and freshwater mix) in the United States (and 3rd largest in the world!) with 150 rivers flowing into its drainage system; covering parts of six states (MD, VA, DE, PA, NY and WV). The word Chesepioc is an Algonquian word referring to a village “at a big river” and collectively, the Powtan tribes were the dominant group long before any Europeans arrived in the area. 

Stretching more than 200 miles from the Susquehanna River in the north to Virginia Beach and the Atlantic Ocean in the south, the Chesapeake Bay watershed is “home” for more than 18 million people and is an integral part of the ecological and economic well-being of the region. The Bay is home to more than 3,600 species of animals and plants and provides important habitat for the wildlife as well as providing an abundance of recreational opportunities. 

In addition to its famous Blue Crabs and sailing culture, the Bay is also renowned for dozens of shipwrecks and its role in The Civil War where the first ironclads battled near Hampton Roads, VA.