Dear Friends,

It is my great honor to introduce The Port of Baltimore Tricentennial Committee, created in June 2005 to coordinate Maryland’s celebration of the 300th anniversary of the founding of the great Port of Baltimore.

Committee members, which include stakeholders from all walks and corners of Maryland, will help drive efforts to educate the state and nation about the Port’s essential role in the economic and cultural development of Maryland and the region to date, and the value of maritime trade in the future global economy.

The mission of the Port of Baltimore is to stimulate statewide economic development, and nobody does it better. Today, the Port’s far-flung activities impact the jobs of 112,000 Maryland workers.

Nearly 16,000 high-paying jobs are directly attributable to the Port, and another 17,000 are linked indirectly. More than 79,000 additional workers statewide benefit from Port-related business.

The Port generates $1.5 billion in business revenues, puts $2 billion into the pocket of Maryland’s workforce, and contributes $220 million in tax revenues.

The vigor of its economic data is just one component of the Port’s story. It’s where the forebearers of a great many Marylanders, the immigrants who established Baltimore’s diverse ethnic neighborhoods, first set foot in America. It’s where many of America’s greatest ships – the biggest and the fastest of their day – were built and launched. It’s where many of Baltimore’s storied captains of industry made their first nickel. It’s where World Wars were won, and the flag of freedom – the Stars and Stripes – still flew in the dawn’s early light.

As the unofficial Mother of the Port, speaking on behalf of fellow Tricentennial Committee members, I urge you to take advantage of the schedule of planned events for the Port’s 300th birthday celebration to learn more about your great Port of Baltimore. See you there!

The Honorable Helen Delich Bentley
Chairman, The Port of Baltimore Tricentennial Committee

For more information on how to support the Port of Baltimore, please visit
Donation Information.

The Port of Baltimore Tricentennial Committee

• Stephan Abel, Maryland Department of Natural Resources
• Horace Alston, International Longshoreman's Association, AFL-CIO
• Trip Bailey, Balterm
• Rebecca Barber, Maryland Port Administration
• Rebecca Bell, Maryland State Department of Education
• Helen Bentley, Chairman, Helen Bentley & Associates, Inc.
• Kristi Betz, Weinberg Harris & Associates
• Kathleen Bond, P&O Ports North America, Inc.
• Dennis M. Castleman, Maryland Department of Business and Economic
  Development
• Linda E. Christenson, Esq., Pride Inc.
• Chris Costello, Maryland Distribution Council
• Michael Derby, Wallenius Wilhelmsen Americas
• Anne Ferro, Secretary-Treasurer, Maryland Motor Truck Association, Inc.
• John Gary
• Nicole Halsey, Weinberg Harris & Associates
• Deborah Kielty, World Trade Center Institute
• Paige Kimos, Weinberg Harris & Associates
• Peter Kitzmiller, Maryland New Car and Truck Dealers Association
• Bud Nixon, Vice-Chairman, Rukert Terminals
• Colm O'Comartun, Office of the Mayor
• John D. Porcari, University of Maryland
• Richard Scher, Maryland Port Administration
• Sig Shapiro, Samuel Shapiro Company, Inc.
• Richard J. Steinke, Maryland State Department of Education
• Lee Tawney, Ocean Race Chesapeake
• Geoff Tobias, Ober Kaler, Attorneys at Law
• Ellen von Karajan, The Preservation Society
• Tracey Weinberg, Weinberg Harris & Associates
• Courtney B. Wilson, The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum
• Roland H. Woodward, The Baltimore Museum of Industry
• Robert O.C Worcester, Maryland Business for Responsive Government
• JoAnne Zawitoski, Semmes, Bowen & Semmes