Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Potomac |
PotomacNoun1. A river in the east central United States; rises in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia and flows eastward to the Chesapeake Bay. 2. Terms sometimes used to refer to Washington D.C. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "Potomac" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1855. (references) |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Potomac is:
- a river in the eastern United States of America: see Potomac River
- an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland: see Potomac, Maryland
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Potomac."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Upper part of the Potomac River Larger image
Introduction
The Potomac River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of United States of America (USA). The river is approximately 413 statute miles (665 km) long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 million square miles (38,000 square km). In terms of area, this makes the Potomac River the fourth largest river along the Atlantic coast of the USA and the 21st largest in the USA as a whole.
Geography
The Potomac River springs from southwest Maryland (MD). The river then forms part of the borders between MD and Washington, DC (the District of Columbia) on the left bank and the State of West Virginia (WV) and the Commonwealth of Virginia (VA) on the right bank. Up to its right bank, the entire Potomac River is considered part of MD, with exception of a small tidal portion within DC.
About 300 miles (483 km) from the source, the Potomac River's estuarine portion commences. About 11 square km of water enters the estuary each year (250 cubic meters/second) at the fall line at Little Falls. Fall line flow is quite variable across months and years, highest during the spring freshet and lowest in late summer (in the absence of hurricanes or major storms).
Once the Potomac drops from the Piedmont to the Coastal Plain, tides further influence the river as it passes through DC and beyond. Salinity in the Potomac River Estuary increases thereafter with distance downstream. The estuary also widens, reaching 11 statute miles (17 km) wide at its mouth, between Point Lookout, MD, and Smith Point, VA, before merging into the Chesapeake Bay.
Major Potomac tributaries include the Shenandoah River (WV and VA) and the Monocacy River (MD) above the fall-line and the Anacostia River (DC and MD) and Occoquan River (VA) below the fall-line.
Over 5 million people live within the Potomac watershed, where precipitation provides the equivalent of over 8 cubic meters (more than 2100 gallons) of water per person per year.
History
1700 to Present
Being situated in an area rich in American history and American heritage has led to the Potomac being nicknamed "the Nation's River." George Washington, USA's first president, was born in, surveyed and spent most of his life within the Potomac basin. All of DC, the nation's capital city, also lies within the watershed. The 1859 siege of Harper's Ferry along the river's right bank was a precursor to numerous epic battles of the American Civil War in and around the Potomac and its tributaries.
With increasing mining and agriculture upstream and urban sewage and runoff downstream, water quality in the Potomac River deteriorated. This created conditions of severe eutrophication. It is said that President Abraham Lincoln used to escape to the highlands on summer nights to escape the river's stench. In the 1960s, with dense green algal blooms covering the river's surface, President Lyndon Johnson declared the river "a national disgrace" and set in motion a long-term effort to reduce sewage pollution and restore the beauty and ecology of this historic river. By the end of the 20th Century, there was notable success, as massive algal blooms vanished and recreational fishing and boating rebounded. Still, the aquatic habitat of the Potomac River and its tributaries remain vulnerable to eutrophication; heavy metals, pesticides and other toxic chemicals; over-fishing; alien species; and pathogens associated with Fecal coliform bacteria and shellfish diseases.
External Links and References
- The Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB)
- Lippson, A. J., et al. [circa early 1980s.] Environmental Atlas of the Potomac Estuary. Maryland, USA: Environmental Center, Martin Marietta Corporation. (Prepared for the Power Plant Siting Program, Maryland Department of Natural Resources.)
- The Potomac Conservancy
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Potomac River."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Potomac is a village located in Vermilion County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 681.Geography
Potomac is located at 40°18'23" North, 87°47'60" West (40.306351, -87.799987)1. According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.2 km² (0.5 mi²). 1.2 km² (0.5 mi²) of it is land and none of it is covered by water.Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 681 people, 252 households, and 191 families residing in the village. The population density is 547.8/km² (1,408.5/mi²). There are 277 housing units at an average density of 222.8/km² (572.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the village is 97.21% White, 0.00% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.00% Asian, 0.29% Pacific Islander, 1.62% from other races, and 0.59% from two or more races. 2.20% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. There are 252 households out of which 36.5% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.7% are married couples living together, 9.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 24.2% are non-families. 21.0% of all households are made up of individuals and 13.1% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.70 and the average family size is 3.11. In the village the population is spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 97.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 96.4 males. The median income for a household in the village is $40,221, and the median income for a family is $44,583. Males have a median income of $32,031 versus $21,417 for females. The per capita income for the village is $15,197. 9.1% of the population and 4.8% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 13.2% are under the age of 18 and 15.3% are 65 or older.Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Potomac, Illinois."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Potomac is an uncorporated area located in Montgomery County, Maryland.
Geography
As an unincorporated area, Potomac's boundaries are not officially defined. Potomac is, however, recognized by the United States Census Bureau as a Census-designated Place, and by the United States Geological Survey as a populated place located at 39°1'22" North, 77°11'11" West (39.022694, -77.186423)1.According to the United States Census Bureau, the place has a total area of 68.8 km² (26.6 mi²). 65.2 km² (25.2 mi²) of it is land and 3.6 km² (1.4 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 5.20% water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 44,822 people, 15,655 households, and 13,024 families residing in the area. The population density is 687.3/km² (1,780.2/mi²). There are 15,960 housing units at an average density of 244.7/km² (633.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the area is 79.46% White, 3.93% African American, 0.11% Native American, 13.37% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.90% from other races, and 2.22% from two or more races. 5.38% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.There are 15,655 households out of which 38.4% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 74.8% are married couples living together, 6.6% have a female householder with no husband present, and 16.8% are non-families. 14.0% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.84 and the average family size is 3.10.
In the area, the population is spread out with 26.3% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 21.3% from 25 to 44, 34.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 44 years. For every 100 females there are 91.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 87.3 males.
The median income for a household in the area is $128,936, and the median income for a family is $142,472. Males have a median income of $100,000 versus $54,428 for females. The per capita income for the area is $64,875. 3.3% of the population and 2.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 3.6% are under the age of 18 and 3.6% are 65 or older.
Potomac, MD 20854 is the second-most affluent zip code in the entire United States, coming in second only behind Beverly Hills, California 90210. The television show Beverly Hills 90210 was originally going to be titled Potomac 20854. One of the reasons Potomac is so affluent is that it is located right near Washington D.C Many rich businessmen live in Potomac and commute in to Washington D.C. during the day to work.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Potomac, Maryland."
Synonyms: PotomacSynonyms: Foggy Bottom (n), Potomac River (n). (additional references) |
Crosswords: Potomac |
| English words defined with "Potomac": battle of Fredericksburg ♦ Conoy ♦ Fredericksburg ♦ Mount Vernon. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "Potomac": Washingtonian. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Movie/TV Titles | ||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Washington Monument and Smithsonian Institution as seen from Potomac River. In: "Protection from Lightning" by Alexander McAdie. 1894. Library Call Number TH 9057.M3 1894. Credit: America's Coastlines. |  | Early morning sculling on the Potomac with the Kennedy Center to left. Credit: America's Coastlines. |
 | Plate 232. The Channel Catfish of the Potomac. Ictalurus albidus (Le S.), J. & G. Credit: National Marine Fisheries Historical Image Collection. |  | Front row, center: Shining among nine other advanced pear selections now getting their mettle tested at several U.S. locations, Potomac was released in May 1993. P. Credit: USDA ARS News; photo by Keith Weller.. |
 | Photographed by G.W. Peart. Features seen include (from left to right): West Potomac Park, the Reflecting Pool with the Lincoln Memorial and Memorial Bridge beyond; and "Main Navy" and "Munitions"buildings. Arlington, Virginia, is in the distance, across the Potomac River. Credit: NAVY. |  | Flies over Arlington, Virginia, with the Potomac River and Washington, D.C., in the background, circa 1931-1932. Note construction work on the Virginia approaches to the Memorial Bridge, with the Lincoln Memorial and the Reflecting Pool at the bridge's D.C. end. The Munitions and Main Navy Buildings are visible on the north (left) side of the Reflecting Pool. Credit: NAVY. |
 | Architectural drawing for a bridge over the Potomac River ("Memorial Bridge"), Washington, D.C. and Arlington, Virginia. Perspective rendering and profile section. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | The lone fisherman of the Potomac -- a big haul by sunrise. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Great Falls, Potomac River, from below looking up. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | From Washington Monument, south, along the wharves and the Potomac River, Washington. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
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| "Great Falls of the Potomac Riv" by Kenn W. Kiser Commentary: "Great Falls of the Potomac River (here forming state line between Maryland and Virginia in the United States). Photo taken from Maryland side." | "Silhouettes" by Jewel Collins Commentary: "Four kids sitting on a bench infront of the Potomac River." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. | |
| Author | Quotation |
President Abraham Lincoln | I could as easily bail out the Potomac River with a teaspoon as attend to all the details of the army. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | WASHINGTONIAN, n. A Potomac tribesman who exchanged the privilege of governing himself for the advantage of good government. In justice to him it should be said that he did not want to. They took away his vote and gave instead The right, when he had earned, to eat his bread. In vain -- he clamors for his "boss," pour soul, To come again and part him from his roll. Offenbach Stutz |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
James Monroe | 1817-1825 | Such portion of the Corps of Topographical Engineers as could be spared from the survey of the coast has been employed in surveying the very important route between the Potomac and the Ohio. |
Lyndon B. Johnson | 1963-1969 | We hope to make the Potomac a model of beauty here in the Capital, and preserve unspoiled stretches of some of our waterways with a Wild Rivers bill. |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | Beyond those monuments to heroism is the Potomac River, and on the far shore the sloping hills of Arlington National Cemetery with its row on row of simple white markers bearing crosses or Stars of David. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Potomac" is generally used as a noun (proper) -- approximately 76.92% of the time. "Potomac" is used about 13 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (proper) | 76.92% | 10 | 111,207 |
| Adjective (general or positive) | 23.08% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Total | 100.00% | 13 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Country | Name |
| USA | Potomac Bancshares, Inc. |
| (more examples...) |
Source: compiled by the editor from Icon Group International, Inc.
1. Potomac, IL (village, FIPS 61366) 2. Potomac, MD (CDP, FIPS 63300) |
Expressions using "Potomac": North Potomac ♦ Potomac Heights ♦ Potomac River. Additional references. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "Potomac"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Russian | потомак. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
Misspellings | |
"Potomac" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Botomba, Fotomec, optomax, Poropak, potamic, Potensac, Potupa, Rotofac, Rotomat. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-c-m-o-o-p-t" | |
-2 letters: campo, coapt, compo, compt, coopt. | |
-3 letters: atom, atop, camp, capo, coat, coma, comp, coop, coot, moat, moot, pact, poco, taco, tamp, toom. | |
-4 letters: act, amp, apt, cam, cap, cat, coo, cop, cot, mac, map, mat, moa, moc, moo, mop, mot, oat, oca, oot, opt, pac, pam, pat, pom, pot, tam, tao, tap, tom. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-c-m-o-o-p-t" | |
+2 letters: compactor. | |
+3 letters: compaction, compactors, comparator, compatriot, polyatomic, postatomic, taphonomic. | |
+4 letters: chromoplast, compactions, comparators, compatriots, compensator, compilation, compurgator, computation, corporatism, homeopathic, homoplastic, photomosaic, proctodaeum, tomographic, toponymical, toxoplasmic. | |
+5 letters: actinomorphy, apochromatic, chromoplasts, companionate, compatriotic, compellation, compensation, compensators, compensatory, compilations, complexation, complication, componential, compurgation, compurgators, computations, contemplator, contemporary, corporatisms, cosmopolitan, cryptogamous, macropterous, monosynaptic, noncompliant, onomatopoeic, paronomastic, photodynamic, photomosaics, postorgasmic, postromantic, proclamation, proctodaeums, protoplasmic. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Images: Digital Art | 9. Quotations: Familiar 10. Quotations: Non-fiction 11. Quotations: Speeches 12. Usage Frequency | 13. Names: Company Usage 14. Cities 15. Expressions 16. Expressions: Internet | 17. Translations: Modern 18. Derivations 19. Anagrams 20. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
