Delmarva Peninsula - Definition and Overview

Delmarva Peninsula map

The Delmarva Peninsula is a large peninsula on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by portions of three U.S. states: Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. Named as a portmanteau of the letters of the states that occupy it, it is almost 300 by 100km or about 180 by 60 miles, and is bordered by the Chesapeake Bay on the west, and the Delaware River, Delaware Bay, and Atlantic Ocean on the east. Its northern isthmus is cut by the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. Bridges cross the canal and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel join the peninsula to the mainland. Other points of access include Rehoboth Beach, reachable by ferry from Cape May, New Jersey. Dover, the capital of Delaware, is in the northeast corner, but the peninsula's main commercial area is Salisbury, Maryland, near the center of the peninsula. The peninsula was the premier location for truck farming of vegetables during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Though it has been largely eclipsed by California's production, the area still produces significant quantities of tomatoes, green beans, and other popular vegetables.

The area was romanticized in Chesapeake, a fictional account of life in the area written by James Michener. A favorite sight on the Atlantic side of the peninsula is Chincoteague Island of Virginia, which together with Assateague Island of Maryland, is noted for its herd of wild ponies accustomed to the seashore, as described by Marguerite Henry in Misty of Chincoteague.

See also: List of U.S. multistate regions