1944 Map of Sparrows Point

About this map

Fort Howard stands at the tip of Patapsco Neck, guarding the entrance to Old Road Bay and the approach to Baltimore during the final years of World War II. The landscape is defined by the massive industrial footprint of the steel works at Sparrows Point, where heavy rail infrastructure like Bear Creek Junction and prominent Chimneys illustrate the era's manufacturing power. Across the water, Hog Neck presents a different character, dotted with residential developments and leisure spots such as Venice on the Bay, Paradise Beach, and Bayside Beach. This geography captures the wartime tension between a burgeoning industrial economy and the waterfront communities that line Bodkin Creek and the Chesapeake Bay, anchored by civil and military landmarks like Fort Smallwood and the Old Lighthouse.