Port Deposit

History

The first recorded European visits to the area were the 1608 and 1609 expeditions led by Captain John Smith up the Chesapeake Bay. He sailed about up the Susquehanna River to the present location of Port Deposit, and gave the name of "Smythe Fayles" to the rapids just above the future town. In 1729, Thomas Cresap established a regular ferry service near Smith's Falls (in the upper Port Deposit area) crossing the Susquehanna to Lapidum; this was referred to as Smith's Ferry or Upper Ferry. In 1731, a road from Susquehanna Upper Ferry toward Philadelphia, as far as the jurisdiction extends, was authorized. In the same year, in the jurisdiction south of the river, a petition was submitted for a road from the mill at 'Rock Run' to Peach Bottom, Pennsylvania. This upper ferry was later purchased by Colonel John Creswell and came to be known as 'Creswell's Ferry'. This location, and Lapidum across the river, were the northernmost navigable deepwater ports on the Susquehanna. River barges and wagons loaded with lumber, grain, coal, whiskey, tobacco, and other goods floated downriver to this "port of deposit", where cargo could be transferred to ships from the Chesapeake. In the early days, it was difficult to float goods downriver, since there were many rapids and hazards, but it remained the most convenient way for goods to leave much of the country drained by the Susquehanna above the falls. Further, since a number of roads converged at the ferry crossing, goods could be carted or "rolled." As early as the 1790s, the forests on the Susquehanna were being logged and the timbers floated downriver to points near the ferry landing. In 1812, the town was platted as Creswell's Landing; months later, Governor Levin Winder signed a bill officially naming the town Port Deposite…

Geography

Port Deposit is located at (39.610915, -76.100172). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is the westernmost incorporated municipality in Cecil County, as well as in the Philadelphia metropolitan area.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  13,183
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  11,968
• Turkey Vulture

  Cathartes aura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,682
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,667
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,429
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  9,419
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  9,268
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,080

Largest nearby schools

• Rising Sun High
  High · North East · 1,106 students · 16.3:1 ratio
• North East High
  High · North East · 1,069 students · 14.8:1 ratio
• Perryville High
  High · Perryville · 858 students · 15.9:1 ratio
• North East Middle
  Middle · North East · 791 students · 13.9:1 ratio
• Rising Sun Middle School
  Middle · Rising Sun · 619 students · 14.4:1 ratio
• Rising Sun Elementary
  Elementary · Rising Sun · 609 students · 15.2:1 ratio
• North East Elementary
  Elementary · North East · 592 students · 16:1 ratio
• Perryville Middle
  Middle · Perryville · 557 students · 14.3:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2025-10-27
  4 km E of Riverside, Maryland
• M 2.6 — 2021-06-25
  2 km SE of Woodlawn, Maryland
• M 2.81 — 2019-09-15
  5 km ESE of East Berlin, Pennsylvania
• M 4.1 — 2017-11-30
  3 km NNE of Little Creek, Delaware
• M 2.64 — 2015-01-25
  4 km ESE of Downingtown, Pennsylvania
• M 3.05 — 2010-06-03
  4 km ENE of Franklintown, Pennsylvania