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MD 6. Pocomoke River and Swamp. Acreage: 20,000 estimated. S 



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Location: Worcester, Wicomico, and Somerset counties; occurs mainly along _< 



the lower 30 miles of the Pocomoke River between its mouth and a point above 



Snow Hill. 



Description: The mysterious "black water," the fine stands of bald cypress, the 

 unusual fauna and flora, the practically bankless edges of the river, and the rich 

 human history give the Pocomoke qualities that in many respects are equalled 

 nowhere else in the United States. The river rises in what was formerly known as 

 the "Great Cypress Swamp" of Delaware and Maryland and flows between nar- 

 row banks for about 60 miles to its entrance into Pocomoke Sound. Thirty miles 

 of the stream, from its mouth to Snow Hill, is navigable, ranging in depth from 

 14 to 36 ft and having an average width of 100 ft. For much of its distance the 

 river is virtually without a shore line, merging gradually into its swamp borders. 

 The woody swamp occupies a narrow strip along each bank of the river and its 

 tributaries. It is continuous for about 30 miles and varies in width from 0.5 to 

 nearly 2 miles. The lower portion of the river is brackish and bordered by salt 

 marshes. Both the river and adjacent swamp lands are affected by tidal flow up- 

 stream to a point well above Snow Hill. Much of the upper swamp, especially 

 that above tidal influence, has been greatly altered by drainage, lumbering, and 

 agriculture. Little of the original swamp now remains north of Highway 50. The 

 lower portions have been little disturbed. 



References: Beaven, G. F., and H. J. Oosting. 1939. Pocomoke Swamp; A 

 study of a cypress swamp on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Bull. Torrey Bot. 

 Club 66:367-389 ill.; Bureau of Outdoor Recreation. 1966. A report on the 

 recreation aspects of the proposed Pocomoke River and Chincoteague Canal, 

 Worcester County, Maryland; Kensey, C. 1966. The Pocomoke River. Tingle 

 Printing Co., Pottsville, Md.; Mansueti, R. 1950. Extinct and vanishing mam- 

 mals of Maryland and the District of Columbia. Maryland Nat. 20( 1-2): 1-48, ill.; 

 Mansueti, R. 1953. A brief natural history of the Pocomoke River. Maryland 

 Department of Research and Education; McCaui.ey, R. H., Jr. 1945. The 

 reptiles of Maryland and District of Columbia. Natural History Society of Bal- 

 timore. 194 p. ill.; Society of Natural History, Del. 1945. Annotated check list 

 of amphibians and reptiles of the Del-Mar-Va Peninsula. 9 p.; Taylor, J. W. 

 1967. The Pocomoke-Maryland's swamp wilderness. Maryland Conserv. July- 

 August, 1967, p. 8-11; Williams, H. A. 1967. Maryland's big black water. Salis- 

 bury Times. 



Ownership: Ownership is complex. Much of the swamp represents the lower ex- 

 tremities of many farms bordering on the river. The Pocomoke State Forest with 

 an area of 12,700 acres lies astraddle the river several miles below Snow Hill. 

 Shad Landing State Park abuts the river on its eastern shore 4 miles southwest 

 of Snow Hill. The Milburn Recreational Park on the opposite shore is approxi- 

 mately 4 miles farther downstream. The 710 acre Pocomoke Wildlife Manage- 

 ment area lies north of Pocomoke City. 



Data source: Pocomoke River and Swamp, a report by Ernst Christensen, In- 

 terpretive Planner, NPS, 1968. 



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