The Potomac River Flows Through Cities, History

June 03, 2013

The Potomac River is the wildest river in the world to flow through a heavily populated area.

From VOA Learning English, welcome to This Is America.

I'm Jim Tedder.

And I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.

Today we tell about the Potomac River. The Potomac is one of America’s most historic waterways. It flows more than 600 kilometers, from the Allegheny Mountains to the Chesapeake Bay and finally into the Atlantic Ocean.

Winding Through Cities and States

The Potomac River is the wildest river in the world that flows through a heavily populated area. On its way from the mountains to the ocean, it runs through West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and the United States capital, Washington, DC.

The Potomac River supplies water for most of the six million people who live in the DC area. Millions of people use the river and the land nearby for boating, fishing, bird watching and other recreational activities. The area is home to birds such as the great blue heron and the American bald eagle.

The Potomac River has played an important part in American history. For example, America's first president, George Washington, lived for many years along the Potomac in Virginia. He urged that the river be developed to link Americans with the West.

We Go Where People Lived Thousands of Years Ago