View source for Delaware Bay

{{Short description|Estuary in the U.S. states of Delaware and New Jersey}}
{{Infobox body of water
| name = Delaware Bay
| native_name = 
| native_name_lang = 
| image = Delawarebaymodis.jpg
| alt = Delaware Bay in Winter from above
| caption = Delaware Bay in Winter
| image_map = Delaware bay map.jpg
| caption_map = Map of Delaware Bay
| pushpin_map = New Jersey
| pushpin_map_alt = 
| pushpin_map_caption = 
| location = 
| coords = {{coord|39|04|N|75|10|W|region:US_type:waterbody_scale:1000000|display=inline, title}}<ref name=gnis>{{Cite GNIS|216373|Delaware Bay}}</ref>
| type = [[Bay]]
| inflow = [[Delaware River]]
| basin_countries = [[United States]]
| area = {{convert|782|sqmi|km2}}<ref name=watershed>[http://kyw.iewatershed.com/index.php?pagename=ow_watershed_overview Overview of the Delaware River Watershed] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050110013316/http://kyw.iewatershed.com/index.php?pagename=ow_watershed_overview |date=2005-01-10 }}</ref>
| elevation = {{convert|0|ft}}<ref name=gnis></ref>
| embedded = {{Designation list
| embed = yes
| designation1 = Ramsar
| designation1_offname = Delaware Bay Estuary
| designation1_date = 20 May 1992
| designation1_number = 559<ref>{{Cite web|title=Delaware Bay Estuary|website=[[Ramsar Convention|Ramsar]] Sites Information Service|url=https://rsis.ramsar.org/ris/559|access-date=25 April 2018|archive-date=14 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614044951/https://rsis.ramsar.org/ris/559|url-status=live}}</ref>}}
}}

'''Delaware Bay''' is the [[estuary]] outlet of the [[Delaware River]] on the northeast seaboard of the United States, lying between the states of [[Delaware]] and [[New Jersey]]. It is approximately {{convert|782|sqmi|km2}} in area,<ref name=watershed></ref> the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltwater of the [[Atlantic Ocean]].

The bay is bordered inland by the states of [[Delaware]] and [[New Jersey]], and its mouth is framed by [[Cape Henlopen]] in Delaware and [[Cape May]] in New Jersey, on the Atlantic. Delaware Bay is bordered by six counties: Sussex, Kent, and New Castle in Delaware, and Cape May, Cumberland, and Salem in New Jersey. The [[Cape May–Lewes Ferry]] crosses Delaware Bay from [[North Cape May, New Jersey]], to [[Lewes, Delaware]]. The bay's ports are managed by the [[Delaware River and Bay Authority]].

The shores of the bay are largely composed of [[salt marsh]]es and [[mudflats]], with only small communities inhabiting the shore of the lower bay. Several of the rivers hold protected status for their salt marsh [[wetlands]] bordering the bay, which serves as a breeding ground for many aquatic species, including [[Atlantic horseshoe crab|horseshoe crabs]]. The bay is also a prime [[oyster]]ing ground.

Delaware Bay was designated a [[Ramsar Convention|Ramsar Wetland of International Importance]] on May 20, 1992. It was the first site classified in the [[Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network]].

==Hydrology==
{{See also|List of Delaware River tributaries#Tributaries of Delaware Bay}}

Delaware Bay is the [[ria]] of the Delaware River, i.e. the drowned river valley that had been the river’s alluvial plain in periods of lower sea level during the [[Quaternary glaciation]]. While the Delaware River is by far the largest tributary of Delaware Bay, numerous smaller rivers and streams also drain to the bay. These include the [[Appoquinimink River]], [[Leipsic River]], [[Smyrna River]], [[St. Jones River]], [[Mispillion River]], [[Broadkill River]] and [[Murderkill River]]s on the Delaware side, and the [[Salem River]], [[Cohansey River]], and [[Maurice River]]s on the New Jersey side.

==Ecology==

Delaware Bay ecosystem is a key stopover site for over 30 species of migrating shorebirds that migrate north come May. Many birds like [[Red knot|red knots]] use this Bay area to fuel up their energy reserves on [[horseshoe crab]] eggs after the long journey. Delaware Bay hosts the largest population of horseshoe crabs in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Horseshoe Crab: A Key Player in Ecology, Medicine, and More|url=https://www.britannica.com/story/horseshoe-crab-a-key-player-in-ecology-medicine-and-more|access-date=2021-08-17|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|archive-date=2021-08-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210817144425/https://www.britannica.com/story/horseshoe-crab-a-key-player-in-ecology-medicine-and-more|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Horseshoe Crab Conservation|url=https://dnr.maryland.gov/ccs/Pages/horseshoecrab-conservation.aspx|access-date=2021-08-17|website=dnr.maryland.gov|archive-date=2021-08-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210817144426/https://dnr.maryland.gov/ccs/Pages/horseshoecrab-conservation.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Horseshoe Crab|url=https://www.nwf.org/Home/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Invertebrates/Horseshoe-Crab|access-date=2021-08-17|website=National Wildlife Federation|language=en|archive-date=2021-08-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210817144426/https://www.nwf.org/Home/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Invertebrates/Horseshoe-Crab|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Ecology|url=https://www.horseshoecrab.org/info/ecology.html|access-date=2021-08-17|website=www.horseshoecrab.org|archive-date=2021-07-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210720003934/https://horseshoecrab.org/info/ecology.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Fisheries|first=NOAA|date=2021-04-28|title=Horseshoe Crabs: Managing a Resource for Birds, Bait, and Blood {{!}} NOAA Fisheries|url=https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/horseshoe-crabs-managing-resource-birds-bait-and-blood|access-date=2021-08-17|website=NOAA|language=en|archive-date=2021-08-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210817144426/https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/horseshoe-crabs-managing-resource-birds-bait-and-blood|url-status=live}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Roosevelt Inlet.JPG|right|thumb|upright=1.2|Beginning of the [[Lewes and Rehoboth Canal]] at the Roosevelt inlet]]
[[File:Delaware Bay Villas NJ.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|The shore on [[Cape May]], near the Atlantic Ocean]]
[[File:Delaware Bay Vinckeboons 14.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Nautical chart of [[Zwaanendael Colony]], a [[Dutch empire|Dutch colony]], and Godyn's Bay (Delaware Bay), 1639]]
At the time of the arrival of the [[Europe]]ans in the early 17th century, the area around the bay was inhabited by the Native American [[Lenape]] people.  They called the Delaware River "Lenape Wihittuck", which means "the rapid stream of the Lenape". Delaware Bay was called "Poutaxat", which means "near the falls".<ref>[http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/TODAY-IN-PHILADELPHIA-HISTORY/Henry-Hudson-claims-the-Delaware-River-for-the-Dutch.html  Henry Hudson claims the Delaware River for the Dutch] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150427124757/http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/TODAY-IN-PHILADELPHIA-HISTORY/Henry-Hudson-claims-the-Delaware-River-for-the-Dutch.html |date=2015-04-27 }} [[philly.com]]</ref>
<ref name ="USGSDel">[http://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/1245/report.pdf  Delaware Place Names] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811214125/https://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/1245/report.pdf |date=2017-08-11 }} [[United States Geological Survey]]</ref>

In 1523, [[Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón]] had received from [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor]] a grant for the land explored in 1521 by Francisco Gordillo and slave trader Captain Pedro de Quejo (de Quexo). Ayllón sent Quejo northward in 1525 and received reports of the coastline from as far north as Delaware Bay. That same year, De Ayllon and Captain Quejo called Delaware Bay by the name "Saint Christopher's Bay". In the 1600s, the bay was known as "Niew Port May" after [[Cornelius Jacobsen May|Captain Cornelius May]].<ref name="USGSDel" />

Another recorded European visit to the bay was by [[Henry Hudson]], who claimed it for the [[Dutch East India Company]] in 1609.  The Dutch called the estuary "Godyns Bay", or "Godins Bay" after a director of the company, [[Samuel Godin|Samuel Godijn]].<ref name="USGSDel" /><ref>[http://www.deldot.gov/archaeology/3_bridges/pdf/hist_bg.pdf  Historic Background] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221155442/http://www.deldot.gov/archaeology/3_bridges/pdf/hist_bg.pdf |date=2016-12-21 }} [[Delaware Department of Transportation]]</ref> As part of the [[New Netherland]] colony, the Dutch established several settlements (the most famous being [[Zwaanendael Colony|Zwaanendael]]) on the shores of the bay and explored its coast extensively.  The thin nature of the corporate colony's presence in the bay and along what was called the South River (now the Delaware) made it possible for [[Peter Minuit]], the former director of New Netherland, to establish a competing [[Sweden|Swedish]] sponsored settlement, [[New Sweden]] in 1638.  The resulting dispute with the Dutch colonial authorities in [[New Amsterdam]] (New York City) was settled when [[Petrus Stuyvesant]] led a Dutch military force into the area in 1655.  After the English took title to the New Netherland colony in 1667 at the [[Treaty of Breda (1667)|Treaty of Breda]] the bay came into their possession and was renamed Delaware Bay, the name given it in 1610 by [[Samuel Argall]], after the then new Governor of Virginia, [[Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr]].<ref name="USGSDel"/> The [[Lenape|Native American tribe]] living along the bay and river were later called the Delaware by the Europeans due to their location.  The U.S. state also takes its name from the bay and the river.

Conflicting crown grants were made to the [[James II of England|James, Duke of York]] and [[William Penn]] on the west bank of the bay and river. Settlement grew rapidly, leading [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia]], upriver on the Delaware, to become the largest city in [[North America]] in the 18th century.  Penn viewed access to Delaware Bay as being so critical to Pennsylvania's survival that he engaged in an eighty-year long [[Penn–Calvert Boundary Dispute|legal boundary dispute]] with the Calvert family to secure it. During the [[French and Indian War]] the dissemination of [[Joshua Fisher (merchant)|Joshua Fisher's]] original publication of the "Chart of Delaware Bay" was restricted by the authorities as its accuracy might advantage an enemy approach.<ref>Wroth, Lawrence C. “Some American Contributions to the Art of Navigation 1519-1802.” ''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society'', vol. 68, 1944, pp. 91ff. [http://www.jstor.org/stable/25080376 JSTOR website] Retrieved 15 Dec. 2022.</ref> In 1782 during the [[American Revolutionary War]], [[Continental Navy]] [[Lieutenant]] [[Joshua Barney]] [[Battle of Delaware Bay|fought]] with a British squadron within the bay. Barney's force of three [[sloop-of-war|sloop]]s defeated a [[Royal Navy]] [[frigate]], a sloop-of-war and a [[Loyalist]] [[privateer]].

The strategic importance of the bay was noticed by the [[Marquis de Lafayette]] during the [[American Revolutionary War]], who proposed the use of [[Pea Patch Island]] at the head of the bay for a defensive fortification to protect the important ports Philadelphia and [[New Castle, Delaware]]. [[Fort Delaware]] was later constructed on Pea Patch Island. During the [[American Civil War]] it was used as a [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] prison camp.

In 1855, the United States government systematically undertook the formation of a {{convert|26|ft|m|abbr=on}} channel {{convert|600|ft|m|abbr=on}} wide from [[Philadelphia]] to deep water in Delaware Bay. The [[Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899]] provided for a {{convert|30|ft|m|sing=on}} channel {{convert|600|ft|m}} wide from Philadelphia to the deep water of the bay. Other names for the bay have been "South Bay" and "Zuyt Baye".<ref name="USGSDel" />

===Today===
The bay is one of the most important navigational channels in the United States; it is the second busiest waterway after the [[Mississippi River]]. Its lower course forms part of the [[Intracoastal Waterway]]. The need for direct navigation around the two capes into the ocean is circumvented by the [[Cape May Canal]] and the [[Lewes and Rehoboth Canal]] at the north and south capes respectively. The upper bay is connected directly to the north end of [[Chesapeake Bay]] by the [[Chesapeake and Delaware Canal]].

The U.S Coast Guard sector for Delaware Bay was established in 2005, and has 570 active personnel, and 195 reservists.<ref>{{cite web |title=USCG Sector Delaware Bay Philadelphia, PA |url=https://www.atlanticarea.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/District-5/District-Units/Sector-Delaware-Bay/adlt/strict/toWww/1/redig/7FA5F13D20184E25AE4248F84D757F33/ |website=atlanticarea.uscg.mil |access-date=20 May 2022}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Partnership for the Delaware Estuary]]
*[[Lewes and Rehoboth Canal]]
*[[Chesapeake and Delaware Canal]]
*[[Broadkill River]]
*[[St. Jones River]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Myers, Albert Cook, ed.  ''Narratives of Early Pennsylvania, West New Jersey, and Delaware, 1630 -1707''. (New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons. 1912) 
*Ward, Christopher.  ''Dutch and Swedes on the Delaware, 1609 – 1664'' (University of Pennsylvania Press. 1930)
*Leiby, A. C.  ''The Early Dutch and Swedish Settlers of New Jersey''   (Princeton: D. Van Nostrand Co. 1964)

==External links==
{{commons category|Delaware Bay}}
{{NIE Poster}}
*[http://www.delawareriverkeeper.org Delaware Riverkeeper Network]
*[http://discoverdelawarebay.org/ Discover Delaware Bay New Jersey]
*{{Cite Collier's|short=x|wstitle=Delaware Bay}}
*{{Cite NSRW|short=x|wstitle=Delaware Bay}}

{{Delaware River and Delaware Bay}}
{{Delaware}}
{{New_Jersey}}
{{Ramsar sites in the United States}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Delaware Bay| ]]
[[Category:Bays of Delaware]]
[[Category:Bays of New Jersey]]
[[Category:Delaware River|Bay]]
[[Category:Estuaries of Delaware]]
[[Category:Estuaries of New Jersey]]
[[Category:Intracoastal Waterway]]
[[Category:Bodies of water of Cape May County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Bodies of water of Cumberland County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Bodies of water in New Castle County, Delaware]]
[[Category:Bodies of water in Kent County, Delaware]]
[[Category:Bodies of water of Salem County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Bodies of water in Sussex County, Delaware]]
[[Category:Borders of Delaware]]
[[Category:Borders of New Jersey]]
[[Category:Ramsar sites in the United States]]
[[Category:Bays of Sussex County, Delaware]]