Mallows Bay Explained

Mallows Bay-Widewater Historic and Archeological District
Nrhp Type:HD
Coordinates:38.4726°N -77.2686°W
Added:April 24, 2015
Refnum:15000173

Mallows Bay is a small bay on the Maryland side of the Potomac River in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The bay is the location of what is regarded as the "largest shipwreck fleet in the Western Hemisphere"[1] [2] and is described as a "ship graveyard."[3]

Mallows Bay was declared a National Marine Sanctuary on September 9, 2019.[4]

Ghost fleet

The "Ghost Fleet" of Mallows Bay is a reference to the hundreds of ships whose remains still rest in its relatively shallow waters.[5] [6] In total, 230 United States Shipping Board Merchant Fleet Corporation ships are sunken in the river.[7] More than 100 of the vessels are wooden steamships, part of a fleet built to cross the Atlantic during World War I.[5] Because they were built of wood due to a lack of available steel, most of these ships were obsolete upon completion after the end of the war.[5]

The U.S. Navy did not want the ships, which were stored in the James River  - at the cost of $50,000 a month  - so they were sold to the Western Marine & Salvage Company.[5] The company moved the ships to the Potomac River at Widewater, Virginia and in 1925, they were towed to Mallows Bay.[5] Western Marine went bankrupt and the ships were burned and remained where they lay.[5] During World War II, Bethlehem Steel built a salvage basin to recover metal from the abandoned ships. Wrecks of various civilian boats are also present at the site.[5]

Access to the ships is through Mallows Bay Park, operated by the county, located at 1440 Wilson Landing Road in Nanjemoy, Maryland. A 0.8miles trail loops around the park and the salvage basin. In 2010, a boat ramp and pier for recreational use was constructed to provide access to the Potomac River. It is popular to canoe or kayak among the ship ruins; the ships form a reef that hosts an array of wildlife.[8] [9]

The bay was listed as an archaeological and historic district on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015, and was declared a National Marine Sanctuary in September 2019.

Among the most prominent ships seen at Mallows Bay is the S.S. Accomac.[10] [11] [12]

See also

References

Notes

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Donald G. . Shomette . The Ghost Fleet of Mallows Bay . The Maryland Natural Resource . Winter 2001 . December 19, 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110420000902/http://www.dnr.state.md.us/naturalresource/winter2001/ghostship.html . April 20, 2011 .
  2. Donald G. . Shomette . The Ghost Fleet of Mallows Bay . Invention & Technology Magazine . 14 . 3 . Winter 1999 . December 19, 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081203140302/http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/it/1999/3/1999_3_12.shtml . December 3, 2008 .
  3. Book: United States Coast Pilot . May 5, 2010 . 43rd . 3 . 2010 . National Ocean Service . Washington, D.C. . 313.
  4. Web site: 9 September 2019 . Designation of Mallows Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary. www.federalregister.gov.
  5. News: Lutz. Lara. Ghost fleet may go from wrecks to recreation. dead. 14 December 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171214230638/http://www.bayjournal.com/article/ghost_fleet_may_go_from_wrecks_to_recreation. Bay Journal. 10 September 2014.
  6. Web site: The Ghost Fleet of Mallows Bay. Sometimes. Interesting. 18 April 2013. 23 March 2017.
  7. Book: Peck, Garrett. The Potomac River: A History and Guide. 2012. The History Press. Charleston, SC. 978-1609496005. 145.
  8. Web site: New Boat Ramp in Mallows Bay . Southern Maryland Living . May 12, 2010 . December 22, 2010.
  9. Web site: Mallows Bay . Maryland Department of Natural Resources . July 19, 2010 . December 22, 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110419221822/http://www.dnr.state.md.us/boating/pdfs/BoatingAccessInformationCharles6.pdf . April 19, 2011 .
  10. Web site: This is the S.S. Accomac which began its career as..... EyeEm. dead. 24 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161224175259/https://www.eyeem.com/p/31103079. Flint. Peter.
  11. Web site: A Paddler's Guide to Mallows Bay. Charles County, Maryland. 10 March 2023.
  12. Web site: 8 SIGHTS TO SEE IN MALLOWS BAY-POTOMAC RIVER NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY. National Marine Sanctuary Foundation. 19 August 2020. 10 March 2023.

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