Did You Know …
› On his famous 1522-24 expedition to North America, Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazano failed to notice the entranceway to the Chesapeake Bay and missed out on becoming the first European to visit the region. That distinction went to Captain John Smith, an English explorer and soldier, more than eight decades later.
› Sixteen of Maryland’s 23 counties border on tidal water. The combined length of the state’s tidal shoreline — including its more than 280 islands — is 4,431 miles.
› The Thomas Viaduct in the Baltimore County community of Relay was the longest railroad bridge in the United States when completed in 1835 and is still in usage.
› In 1784, the first hot air balloon ascension in the United States took place in Baltimore. The silk air balloon was designed by Bladensburg innkeeper, attorney and aviation enthusiast Peter Carnes, and the ascent was made by 13-year-old Edward Warren.
› Located in the Potomac River, Mallows Bay in Charles County is home to the largest shipwreck fleet in the Western Hemisphere, holding more than 200 sunken, mostly World War I-era wooden steamships.
› At its narrowest point near the Washington County town of Hancock, the state is only 1.8 miles wide.
› The official state dinosaur, the Astrodon Johnstoni, was discovered in Prince George’s County in 1858 by geologist and scientist Phillip Tyson. The colossal, plant-eating sauropod lived in what became Maryland roughly 95 to 130 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous period.
› In 1789, the Harford County city of Havre de Grace missed out on becoming the fledgling nation’s capital by only a single vote. That same year, George Washington stayed overnight at HdG’s Rogers House tavern on the way to New York City for his first inauguration.
› In July of 1864 during the Civil War, Hagerstown was ransomed by the Confederate Army. Brig. Gen. John “Tiger John” McCausland Jr. and his rebel forces threatened to torch the Maryland Panhandle city if residents did not pay a sum of $20,000, as well as provide 1,500 suits for his troops. Reluctantly, Hagerstown’s citizenry paid the ransom and the Confederate troops left the next day.
› Prince George’s County’s College Park Airport is the oldest continuously operated airport in the world. The Wright Brothers helped establish the airport in 1909.
› Maryland’s most cited haunted site is Point Lookout Light in the St. Mary’s County community of Scotland. Built in 1830, the lighthouse — now a self-guided museum operated by the Maryland Park Service — served as a prisoner of war camp and hospital during the Civil War where thousands perished due to harsh conditions. (According to paranormal experts and enthusiasts, the historic Lord Baltimore Hotel is Charm City’s most haunted spot.)
› Located in the White Clay Creek watershed, the Delaware-Maryland-Pennsylvania Tri-State Point is the meeting point of the borders of the northwestern corner of Delaware, the northeastern corner of Maryland and the southern edge of Pennsylvania. A historical marker at the site was erected in 1849 and is accessible via a multi-state hiking trail network.
› Maryland’s official state exercise is walking. In addition, Maryland became the first state to have an official state exercise in 2008.
The history of Jewish Barcelona is fascinating and complex, and a tour of the Jewish Quarter offers a glimpse into the city’s tragic past.
Quick: how many of Maryland’s 23 counties have you visited? There's plenty to see and do in the "Old Line State."
Philadelphia's Eastern State Penitentiary housed Al Capone and Willie Sutton, as well as Jewish convicts who began davening together there in the 1920s.
Next year, the American railroad will officially mark its bicentennial, and Baltimore will play a central role in the celebration.