Somerset County on Maryland’s Eastern Shore is bounded by the Chesapeake Bay to the west and Virginia to the south, and is the state’s southernmost county. It is located approximately 100 miles from the Baltimore/Washington, Wilmington/ Philadelphia, and Norfolk/Hampton Roads metro areas. Crisfield and Princess Anne are the major business and industrial centers. Somerset’s 415 businesses employ 3,730 workers; major employers include Sysco Eastern Maryland, Handy International, Mountaire Farms, PNC, Rubberset, Eastern Correctional Institute and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

Somerset is a major seafood processor and poultry producer, and provides a rich agricultural harvest. Princess Anne is the county seat and home of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, which offers a doctoral program in marine, estuarine and environmental sciences.The county has a 776 acre Enterprise Zone in Crisfield and a 1,155 acre Enterprise Zone in Princess Anne. Somerset participates in the One Maryland Program, which offers significant tax credits for capital investments that create jobs. Plans for a hotel conference center are moving forward along with the future development of an industrial park in the city of Crisfield.The Economic Development Commission is working to assist in the commercial development of the Crisfield waterfront and to attract aerospace industry, natural gas, wind, solar and energy projects.