An Atlantic Ocean seaport, Annapolis is the capital of the state of Maryland. It lies along the Severn River at its mouth on Chesapeake Bay, 27 miles (43 kilometers) southeast of Baltimore. The city's many surviving buildings from the colonial period of United States history lend it a historical air.

Places of interest

The United States Naval Academy, founded in 1845, stands beside the river on the site of old Fort Severn. It has a museum containing relics from American naval history and a large collection of model ships. The city is also the site of St. John's College, founded in 1784.

The Colonial Annapolis Historic District contains the Maryland State House. Built between 1772 and 1779, it is the oldest state capitol still in legislative use. There Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris, which ended the American Revolution.

Economy and History

Government offices are the major source of employment. The leading industries are crab and oyster fishing, seafood processing, and boatbuilding.

The city was named Providence by the Puritan exiles from Virginia who founded it in 1649. Later it was known as Town Land at Proctor's and then as Anne Arundel Town. It was renamed Annapolis, in honor of Princess (later Queen) Anne of England, after it became the colonial capital in 1694.

As the capital of the American colonies the city was a center of social and political life. Like Boston, Annapolis had a “tea party” to protest taxes that the citizens had to pay to the British. On October 19, 1774, patriots forced the owner of the Peggy Stewart to burn his ship and cargo of tea. The city was the site of several other significant events of that period as well. The Annapolis Convention, held in 1786, was an important step toward the creation of the United States Constitution. Population (2000 census), 35,838.