The port tobacco river runs about 8.5 miles through Charles County in Southern Maryland, then flows into the Potomac River at Windmill Point. The upper portion of the river is flows freely, passing through agricultural and forest land. The lower portion, near its meeting with the Potomac, has weak tidal currents, flowing slowly through land that is comparatively flat. The Port Tobacco is fed by freshwater streams and marshes. Altogether, the area that feeds into the river (its watershed) comprises about 28,000 acres (44 square miles).

Historically important, the Port Tobacco River served the town of Port Tobacco located four miles north of where the Port Tobacco River meets the Potomac. Behind St. Mary’s City, the town was once Maryland’s second largest port. Tobacco shipped from the colonies to England began its journey on the Port Tobacco River. The port was important enough to be included on world maps of the 1600s and 1700s. However, over time, run-off from local farms and plantations raised the levels of silt in the river until the Port Tobacco was no longer usable by large vessels. The railroad through La Plata replaced Port Tobacco as a trade route.

The Port Tobacco, like many of the rivers that flow into the Potomac, as well as the Potomac itself, has been used by American Indians as well as European settlers as a source of fish, particularly largemouth bass and striped bass, known in Maryland as rockfish. The river was also a source of crabs and oysters, but both are now in decline.

Now used for recreational fishing and boating, including kayaking and canoeing, the Port Tobacco River is also a popular spot from which to sail into the Potomac River. As a tributary of the Potomac River, the Port Tobacco River is closely monitored by environmental groups such as the Potomac River Conservancy and Port Tobacco River Conservancy. These groups are interested in keeping the Potomac clean in addition to preserving the river’s natural resources.

Kihl, Kim R. Port Tobacco: A Transformed Community. Baltimore: Maclay and Associates, 1982.

Maryland Department of Natural Resources Chesapeake Bay database, “Surf Your Watershed, Watershed Profiles.” Port Tobacco River information. http://mddnr.chesapeakebay.net/