Ewell on Smith Island in Somerset County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Smith Island Work Boats
Whether it's a deadrise or skipjack, a pungy or a bugeye, classic Chesapeake workboats are anchored in tradition. Early log-built canoes, sleek schooners and versatile sailing skiffs all inspired builders to craft variations that matched hull shapes, sailing rigs and other features to the promise and perils of working the Chesapeake Bay. From the beginning, mariners needed maneuverable, shallow-draft vessels suited to the narrow inlets and shoal waters of the bay and its tributaries. In the 1800s, exploding demand for Chesapeake oysters drove the evolution of larger, faster boats that could work far from shore in all kinds of weather. And while small operations continued with traditional gear hand tongs, dip nets and hand seines with time, increasingly efficient scrapes, dredges and fishing apparatus became available to help watermen maximize their catches.
Deadrise: Used from late 1800s to present for oyster tonging, crabbing, clamming, eeling and net fishing.
Patent tonger: Used from the 1950s to present. A deadrise workboat equipped with a hydraulic patent-tong rig that is operated by a system of levers and pedals typically used in deeper parts of the bay for oyster dredging.
Barcat: Used from 1930s to present, able to work over shallow sandbars to scrape and catch softshell crabs.
Skipjack:
this page online
Erected by the National Trails Program through the Maryland State Highway Administration, with additional funding from the Lower Eastern Shore Heritage Council and the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals • Industry & Commerce • Waterways & Vessels.
Location. 37° 59.749′ N, 76° 1.98′ W. Marker is on Smith Island, Maryland, in Somerset County. It is in Ewell. It is on Smith Island Road north of Caleb Jones Road, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 4080 Smith Island Rd, Ewell MD 21824, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on the Eastern Shore. It is also in the American Mid-Atlantic, on the Delmarva Peninsula, in the Tidewater, and in the Chesapeake Bay Region. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies and also the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Smith Island Cake (a few steps from this marker); World Wars I and II Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Armed Forces Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Korean and Vietnam Wars Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); State Dessert Smith Island Cake (within shouting distance of this marker); Smith Island
Credits. This page was last revised on October 12, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 12, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 43 times since then and 23 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 12, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
