Maryland Route 21 is a state highway

State highway

State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

. Known as Tolchester Beach Road, the state highway runs 2.42 miles (3.9 km) from MD 445

Maryland Route 445

Maryland Route 445 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from Eastern Neck Island in the southwest corner of Kent County north to MD 21 in Tolchester Beach. MD 445 connects Rock Hall with the Tolchester Beach area as well as Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge...

 in Tolchester Beach

Tolchester Beach, Maryland

Tolchester Beach was a popular resort established in 1877,located on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Kent County, Maryland.It was located just north of Rock Hall, Maryland, and closed in 1962.-External links:***...

 east to MD 20

Maryland Route 20

Maryland Route 20 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from Beach Road and Lawton Avenue in Rock Hall east to MD 291 in Chestertown. MD 20, which connects Chestertown with several villages in western Kent County, was designated one of the original state roads...

 near Fairlee

Fairlee, Maryland

Fairlee, Maryland is an unincorporated community in Kent County, Maryland, United States.-References:...

 in western Kent County

Kent County, Maryland

Kent County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, on its Eastern Shore. It was named for the county of Kent in England. Its county seat is Chestertown. In 2010, the county population was 20,197...

. MD 21 was constructed in the mid 1920s to provide a modern road connection to Tolchester Beach, then a major beach resort on the Chesapeake Bay

Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...

.

Route description

MD 21's west terminus is coexistent with the northern terminus of MD 445 (Tolchester Road) in Tolchester Beach. Two county highways issue from the intersection: Bay Shore Road heads north while Tolchester Beach Road heads west to the former resort area. MD 21 heads southeast through forest and then farmland on the way to its eastern terminus at MD 20 (Rock Hall Road) south of Fairlee.

History

Tolchester Beach was a major resort on the Chesapeake Bay featuring swimming, picnicking, and amusement park-type rides. The resort opened in 1877 and thrived with the traffic generated by steamboat excursions beginning in 1887 from various ports on the bay, including Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

. MD 21 was constructed to provide an all-weather road from the Tolchester Beach resort to MD 20 in 1924 and 1925. By 1927, a ferry connected Tolchester Beach with the Inner Harbor

Inner Harbor

The Inner Harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and iconic landmark of the City of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Described by the Urban Land Institute in 2009 as “the model for post-industrial waterfront redevelopment around the World.” The Inner Harbor is actually the end of the...

 of Baltimore. This ferry service continued through at least 1940. After a long decline due to the rise of more modern resorts, Tolchester Beach closed in 1962. MD 21's western terminus was moved from the beach east to MD 445 in 1995.

Junction list

The entire route is in Kent County

Kent County, Maryland

Kent County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, on its Eastern Shore. It was named for the county of Kent in England. Its county seat is Chestertown. In 2010, the county population was 20,197...

.

{|class=wikitable
!Location
!Mile

!Destinations
!Notes
|-
|Tolchester Beach
|0.00
| / Tolchester Beach Road west / Bay Shore Road north – Rock Hall

Rock Hall, Maryland

Rock Hall is a town in Kent County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,396 at the 2000 census.The town is a center for the fishing, crabbing, and oystering industries in Kent County as well as a home to marinas that cater to the pleasure craft that sail the Chesapeake Bay...

|Western terminus
|-
|Fairlee

Fairlee, Maryland

Fairlee, Maryland is an unincorporated community in Kent County, Maryland, United States.-References:...

|2.42
|
|Eastern terminus

External links

• MD 21 @ MDRoads.com