The theory of Battisti and Clarke (1982) to calculate analytically barotropic tidal currents across 'smooth' continental margin topography is shown to be valid near shore on 'nonsmooth' continental shelves. The theory includes longshore gradients and friction and produces formulae easily evaluated with coastal sea level data. The tidal currents across three such shelves (West Florida, south of Long Island, and Vancouver Island) are calculated and compared with those observed.