Nanticoke River
Encyclopedia
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
on the Delmarva Peninsula
Delmarva Peninsula
The Delmarva Peninsula is a large peninsula on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by most of Delaware and portions of Maryland and Virginia...
. It rises in southern Kent County
Kent County, Delaware
Kent County is a county located in the central part of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is coextensive with the Dover, Delaware, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010 the population was 162,310, a 28.1% increase over the previous decade. The county seat is Dover, the state capital...
, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
, flows through Sussex County
Sussex County, Delaware
Sussex County is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Delaware. As of 2010 the population was 197,145, an increase of 25.9% over the previous decade. The county seat is Georgetown. The Seaford Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Sussex County.Sussex County is...
, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
, and forms the boundary between Dorchester County
Dorchester County, Maryland
Dorchester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland on its Eastern Shore. It is bordered by the Choptank River to the north, Talbot County to the northwest, Caroline County to the northeast, Wicomico County to the southeast, Sussex County, Delaware, to the east, and the Chesapeake...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
and Wicomico County
Wicomico County, Maryland
As of the census of 2010, there were 98,733 people, 37,220 households, and 24,172 families residing in the county. The population density was 261.7 people per square mile . There were 41,192 housing units at an average density of 109.2 per square mile...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. The river course proceeds southwest and it empties into the Chesapeake at Nanticoke, Maryland
Nanticoke, Maryland
Nanticoke is an unincorporated community in Wicomico County, Maryland, United States.-References:...
. The river is 64.3 miles (103.5 km) long. A 26-mile ecotourism
Ecotourism
Ecotourism is a form of tourism visiting fragile, pristine, and usually protected areas, intended as a low impact and often small scale alternative to standard commercial tourism...
water trail
Water trail
Water trails or Blueways are marked routes on navigable waterways such as rivers, lakes, canals and coastlines for people using small non-motorized boats such as kayaks, canoes, rafts, or rowboats. Some trails may be suitable for float tubing...
running along the River was set aside in July 2011 by Delaware state and federal officials, contiguous with a 37-mile water-trail extending through Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
to the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
.
Its main tributaries are Marshyhope Creek
Marshyhope Creek
Marshyhope Creek is a tributary of the Nanticoke River on the Delmarva Peninsula. It rises in Kent County, Delaware, and runs through Caroline County, Maryland, and Dorchester County, Maryland....
on the north side and Gravelly Fork and Broad Creek on the south side. Notable communities situated along the river include the towns of Nanticoke, Bivalve
Bivalve, Maryland
Bivalve is a small town along the eastern shore of the lower Nanticoke River, near its mouth on the Chesapeake Bay, in Wicomico County, Maryland, United States. Bivalve takes its name from the oyster, upon which the town's economy once depended. Currently there is no economy to speak of. It is...
, Vienna
Vienna, Maryland
Vienna is a town in Dorchester County, Maryland, United States. The population was 280 at the 2000 census.-History:Vienna was founded in 1706. It thrived on trade, shipbuilding and tobacco farming. Throughout the next century, the British would raid the town repeatedly, and also during the War of...
, and Sharptown
Sharptown, Maryland
Sharptown is a town in Wicomico County, Maryland, United States. The population was 649 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Salisbury, Maryland Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Sharptown is located at ....
in Maryland; and the city of Seaford, Delaware
Seaford, Delaware
Seaford is a city located along the Nanticoke River in Sussex County, Delaware. According to the 2010 Census Bureau figures, the population of the city is 6,928, an increase of 3.4% from the 2000 census...
.
According to a study paid for by the town of Vienna, the English explorer John Smith travelled up the Nanticoke River and mapped it, and visited with Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
in their settlement, now believed to be Vienna.