The Cumberland Valley is a northern constituent valley of the
Great Appalachian Valley, within the
Atlantic Seaboard
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Eastern United States meets the North Atlantic Ocean. The eastern seaboard contains the co ...
watershed in
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
and
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...
. The
Appalachian Trail crosses through the valley.
Geography
The valley is bound to the west and north by the
Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians (
Bear Pond Mountains
The Bear Pond Mountains are a sub-range in the Appalachian Mountains, that straddle Pennsylvania and Maryland in the United States. These mountains are a part of the Ridge and Valley Appalachians and reach their highest point at Cross Mountain ...
/
Blue Mountain), to the east and south by
South Mountain South Mountain or South Mountains may refer to:
Canada
* South Mountain, a village in North Dundas, Ontario
* South Mountain (Nova Scotia), a mountain range
* South Mountain (band), a Canadian country music group
United States
Landforms
* Sout ...
, to the northeast by the
Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...
at
Harrisburg
Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...
, and to the south by the
Potomac River
The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augu ...
. The portion of the valley residing in Maryland is sometimes referred to as the
Hagerstown Valley Hagerstown Valley is located in Maryland in the United States. It is part of the Great Appalachian Valley, which continues northward as Cumberland Valley in Pennsylvania, and southward as Shenandoah Valley in West Virginia and Virginia.
Hagerstown ...
.
The
Cumberland Valley Railroad, the
Cumberland Valley AVA
The Cumberland Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Washington County in west-central Maryland and Franklin and Cumberland counties in south-central Pennsylvania. Only of the included in the wine appellation are planted t ...
wine region, and the
Cumberland Valley School District
The Cumberland Valley School District is a large, rural and suburban public school district located in Central Pennsylvania. It covers Hampden Township, Monroe Township, Middlesex Township and Silver Spring Township in Cumberland County, Penn ...
are named for the region.
Cvschools.org: Cumberland Valley School District
/ref>
Settlements
Cities in the Cumberland Valley include Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...
,[Cumberland Valley Railroad, March 2002 – Harrisburg Pennsylvania to Winchester Virginia](_blank)
Retrieved 2011-01-28. and Hagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown is a city in Washington County, Maryland,
United States and the county seat of Washington County. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2020 census was 43,527, and the population of the Hagerstown metropolitan area (exte ...
. Pennsylvania boroughs include Camp Hill, Mechanicsburg, Carlisle
Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers Eden, Caldew and Petteril. It is the administrative centre of the City ...
, Shippensburg
Shippensburg is a borough in Cumberland and Franklin counties in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Settled in 1730, Shippensburg lies in the Cumberland Valley, southwest of Harrisburg, and is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan ...
, Chambersburg
Chambersburg is a borough in and the county seat of Franklin County, in the South Central region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Great Appalachian Valley, and north of Maryland and the Ma ...
, Waynesboro, and Greencastle.
See also
* Great Appalachian Valley
References
*
External links
Cumberland Valley blog
History of the Cumberland Valley, Pennsylvania
Valleys of Pennsylvania
Valleys of Maryland
Landforms of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
Landforms of Franklin County, Pennsylvania
Landforms of Washington County, Maryland
Regions of Maryland
Regions of Pennsylvania
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