Baltimore is an independent city and the largest city in the
state of Maryland in the United States. As of 2007, the population
of Baltimore City was 640,961. The city is a major U.S. seaport,
situated closer to major Midwestern markets than any other major
seaport on the East Coast. Once an industrial town with an economic
base in manufacturing, Baltimore's economy has shifted primarily
to a service sector-oriented, with the largest employer no longer
Bethlehem Steel but The Johns Hopkins University and The Johns
Hopkins Hospital.
