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“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Accokeek in Prince George's County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Traveling on the Potomac River

The National Colonial Farm

— Accokeek Foundation at Piscataway Park —

 
 
Traveling on the Potomac River Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), August 14, 2020
1. Traveling on the Potomac River Marker
Inscription.
For more than 10,000 years, the Potomac River has been a key to prosperity for people living within its watershed—providing water, food, recreational opportunities, and a means of transportation.

Native Americans in birch bark and dugout canoes were the first to travel on the Potomac River and its tributaries. In 1608, John Smith’s voyage heralded the European colonization of the Potomac. As the colonies grew, larger boats and sailing vessels plied the Potomac, carrying people and supplies, and stopping at large plantations like Mount Vernon to load tobacco for the journey to the Chesapeake Bay and across the Atlantic to European markets.

In time, the internal combustion engine changed transportation on the Potomac as elsewhere. But a sense of the river’s maritime history returns when sailing, canoeing, or kayaking its waters today.

The First Paddleboat
Native Americans taught the colonists to make dugout by hollowing out large logs. This reproduction by National Colonial Farm staff was 14 feet long, weighed several hundred pounds and could carry four adults.
 
Erected by Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial EraNative Americans
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Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1608.
 
Location. 38° 41.772′ N, 77° 3.962′ W. Marker has been reported damaged. Marker is in Accokeek, Maryland, in Prince George's County. Marker is on Bryan Point Road (Entrance to the Park). The marker is on the grounds of the National Colonial Farm. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Accokeek MD 20607, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location. Fishing the Potomac River (here, next to this marker); The Potomac Heritage (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Cherished Homeland (about 400 feet away); John Smith Explores the Chesapeake (about 400 feet away); Join the Adventure (about 400 feet away); The Hon. Frances Payne Bolton (about 400 feet away); The National Colonial Farm (about 500 feet away); People Shaping the Land (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Accokeek.
 
Traveling on the Potomac River Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
2. Traveling on the Potomac River Marker
Traveling on the Potomac River Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), August 14, 2020
3. Traveling on the Potomac River Marker
Modern made boat on the River image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
4. Modern made boat on the River
Fishing pier on the grounds of the National Colonial Farm image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
5. Fishing pier on the grounds of the National Colonial Farm
Mount Vernon across the River from the National Colonial Park image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
6. Mount Vernon across the River from the National Colonial Park
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on August 14, 2020. It was originally submitted on December 6, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 448 times since then and 6 times this year. Photos:   1. submitted on August 14, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.   2. submitted on December 6, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland.   3. submitted on August 14, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.   4, 5, 6. submitted on December 6, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 29, 2024