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 | — |
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.
this page online
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial Era • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • 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. It 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.
Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, in the Mid-Atlantic, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies and also the Antebellum South.
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
Photographed by Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
3. Modern made boat on the River
Photographed by Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
4. Fishing pier on the grounds of the National Colonial Farm
Photographed by Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
5. Mount Vernon across the River from the National Colonial Park
Photographed by Don Morfe, July 26, 2009
6. Traveling on the Potomac River Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on January 29, 2026. It was originally submitted on December 6, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 560 times since then and 16 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 14, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on December 6, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
