Backbone Mountain

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Backbone Mountain
Elevation 3,360 feet (1263 metres)
Location Maryland, USA
Range Allegheny Mountains
Coordinates 39°14′14″N, 79°29′09″W
Topo map USGS Davis
First ascent unknown

Backbone Mountain is a ridge of the Allegheny Mountains of the central Appalachian Range in the United States. It stretches approximately 10 mi (16 km) southwest to northeast, from Preston County in northern West Virginia into Garrett County in Western Maryland. The summit of the ridge is Hoye Crest (named for Captain Charles Hoye of the Garrett County, Maryland, Historical Society), located in Maryland, just east of the state line and forms the highest point in the state.

The mountain range provides a boundary between two watersheds. The headwaters of Youghiogheny River, in the watershed of the Mississippi River, lie just northwest of the mountain, whereas the headwaters of the North Branch of the Potomac River lie just south of the mountain, along the West Virginia-Maryland border.

The ridge is crossed by U.S. Highway 50.

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