Maryland Geological Survey

FactSheet 2

Land Areas, Inland-Water Areas, and Length of Shorelines of Maryland's Counties

contact: Dale Shelton (dshelton@mgs.md.gov)

COUNTY	Land Area^* (mi²)	Water Area^* (mi²)	Total Area^* (mi²)	Rank	Shoreline Length^**
COUNTY	Land Area^* (mi²)	Water Area^* (mi²)	Total Area^* (mi²)	Rank	miles	kilometers
Allegany	427.62	0.38	428.00	13	———	———
Anne Arundel	418.37	35.24	453.61	11	508	817
Baltimore City	80.34	11.67	92.01	--	61	98
Baltimore	597.60	34.99	632.59	4	232	370
Calvert	213.23	27.09	240.32	23	230	358.57
Caroline	320.79	3.60	324.39	20	120	193
Carroll	451.98	0.47	452.45	12	———	———
Cecil	359.55	21.20	380.75	17	217	349
Charles	451.58	35.20	486.78	8	305	491
Dorchester	593.22	67.75	660.97	3	1,539	2,476
Frederick	662.72	4.60	667.32	1	———	———
Garrett	656.83	7.58	664.41	2	———	———
Harford	447.64	16.50	464.14	10	249	401
Howard	251.00	2.51	253.51	22	———	———
Kent	278.34	25.30	303.64	21	343	552
Montgomery	495.44	10.14	505.58	6	———	———
Prince George's	487.01	12.20	499.21	7	119	191
Queen Anne's	371.86	29.20	401.06	15	414	666
St. Mary's	372.54	37.68	410.22	14	536	862
Somerset	338.41	35.85	374.26	18	1,106	1,780
Talbot	258.62	67.70	326.32	19	605	973
Washington	454.97	12.10	467.07	9	———	———
Wicomico	379.10	14.40	393.50	16	361	581
Worcester	474.86	110.00	584.86	5	774	1,245
SUBTOTAL	9,843.62	623.35	10,466.97	(not applicable)	7,719	12,420
Chesapeake Bay (Maryland portion only)			1,726 (Eastern Shore 2,912) (Western Shore 1,510)	(not applicable)	6,945	11,175
GRAND TOTAL	9,844	623	12,193		7,719	12,420

*Reference: The Maryland Manual, 1988-89. It should be noted that the Maryland Manual prints area figures in each edition (biannually), but that over the years, the figures have changed. Since the Manual does not reference its source of information or how the area figures were determined, exactly why the figures have changed is not clear. It is interesting to note that the total area (excluding Chesapeake Bay) adds up to approximately 10,467 square miles, while the U.S. Geological Survey reports an area of 10,577 square miles - a difference of some 110 square miles.
**from Table 2 in Hennessee, L., Valentino, M.J., and Lesh, A.M., 2003, Updating Shore Erosion Rates in Maryland: Maryland Geological Survey, Baltimore, Md., Coastal and Estuarine Geology File Report No. 03-05, 26 p. (unsmoothed, recent (ca. 1990) shorelines digitized from digital orthophoto quarter quads)
Shoreline lengths are approximations and do not meet standards for legal sufficiency. The method of measurement was arbitrary, but consistent. Shorelines were digitized from Maryland Department of Natural Resources digital orthophoto quarter-quadrangles flown between 1988 and 1995. The digital shorelines were processed using geographic information system software to develop numerical shoreline lengths. The shoreline data and methodology for producing these figures are available on the Maryland Geological Survey web page "Shoreline Vector Maps"

Compiled by the Maryland Geological Survey, 2300 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, MD 21218
This electronic version of "FactSheet No.2 " was prepared by R.D. Conkwright, Division of Coastal and Estuarine Geology, Maryland Geological Survey. Please send comments on this page to Dale Shelton (dshelton@mgs.md.gov)

Maryland Geological Survey is a part of the Resource Assessment Service
Maryland Department of Natural Resources, State of Maryland

Updated May 8, 2007

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