Absecon Inlet is a narrow strait on the southeastern coast of

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

.''Merriam Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Third Edition'', pp. 3-4. Brigantine NJ from 47th floor of Revel Atlantic City

Geography

Absecon Inlet leads from the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

through

barrier islands Barrier islands are coastal landforms and a type of dune system that are exceptionally flat or lumpy areas of sand that form by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a f ...

Atlantic County Atlantic County is a County (United States), county located along the southern coast of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the county had a population of 274,534.

, New Jersey. Its southern shore is the north end of

Absecon Island Absecon Island is a barrier island located on the Jersey Shore of the Atlantic Ocean in Atlantic County, New Jersey. On the island from north to south are the resort communities of Atlantic City, Ventnor, Margate, and Longport. The island ends a ...

, on which lies Atlantic City, New Jersey. Absecon Lighthouse is south of the inlet and overlooks it from the north end of Absecon Island. Brigantine Island is to the north and east. The Brigantine Bridge carries New Jersey Route 87 over the inlet. Absecon Inlet separates

from Brigantine Island, and including its continuation, Absecon Channel, connects Absecon Bay and Reeds Bay with the Atlantic Ocean. Absecon Inlet was described in 1878, ''viz''.,

Namesakes

Two

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

ships—the cargo ship USS ''Absecon'', in use briefly in 1918, and the

aircraft catapult An aircraft catapult is a device used to allow aircraft to take off from a very limited amount of space, such as the deck of a vessel, but can also be installed on land-based runways in rare cases. It is now most commonly used on aircraft carrier ...

training ship USS ''Absecon'', in commission from 1943 to 1947—and the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...

cutter USCGC ''Absecon, in commission from 1949 to 1972, were named for Absecon Inlet.

Notes

References

*''Merriam Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Third Edition''. Springfield, Massachusetts: Merriam-Webster, Incorporated, 1997. . * (See ship namesake paragraph.) Inlets of New Jersey Straits of New Jersey Bodies of water of Atlantic County, New Jersey {{AtlanticCountyNJ-geo-stub