Port of Baltimore

Port of Baltimore
Cargo loading cranes at the Sea Girt and Dundalk Marine Terminals along the northeast shore of the Northwest Branch of the Patapsco River towards the Inner Harbor and downtown Baltimore
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Details
Owned by	Maryland Port Administration
Draft depth	50 feet
Air draft	182 feet (Chesapeake Bay Bridge). Previously also restricted to 185 feet by the Francis Scott Key Bridge (1977-2024)

The Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore is a shipping port along the tidal basins of the three branches of the Patapsco River in Baltimore, Maryland, on the upper northwest shore of the Chesapeake Bay. It is the nation's largest port facility for specialized cargo (roll-on/roll-off ships) and passenger facilities. It is operated by the Maryland Port Administration (MPA),^[1] a unit of the Maryland Department of Transportation.^[2]

Founded in 1706, the port was renamed in 2006 for Helen Delich Bentley (1923–2016), who represented Baltimore as a U.S. Representative for a decade and who had also been a maritime reporter and editor for The Baltimore Sun daily newspaper.^[3]

Since March 26, 2024, the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge has blocked ships' access to the port, which remains reachable by trucks.