The City of Havre de Grace is located in northeast Maryland at the mouth of the Susquehanna River on the Chesapeake Bay . The City is centrally located between Wilmington , Delaware , which is forty miles to the northeast, and Baltimore , Maryland , which is thirty-five miles to the southwest. These cities are connected by US 40, which extends through the City, and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Highway (Interstate 95), located just northwest of the City. Havre de Grace is in the eastern corner of Harford County and constitutes one of the three municipalities in the County. Other municipalities include the City of Aberdeen located three miles to the southwest, and Bel Air, the County seat, which is located thirteen miles west of the City. Northeast of Havre de Grace, across the Susquehanna River , is Perryville, which is a small community located in Cecil County .

The first recorded history of Havre de Grace dates back to the mid-1500's. An Englishman named Wyth created a preliminary map of the Bay in 1585, but it was not until John Smith's exploration of the Upper Bay and Susquehanna River area in 1608 that a detailed description of the area was recorded.

The City became known as Havre de Grace in or around 1782. According to legend, Lafayette referred to the City as Havre de Grace in a letter to George Washington. The letter stated that the site reminded him of the French seaport, Le Havre . Havre de Grace was incorporated as a Town in 1785.