Welcome to London Town

Welcome to London Town. . , Founded in 1685, London Town was a colonial tobacco port along the South River. It was made up of 100 acres of land and home to a variety of people, both free and unfree. Some were merchants, wealthy businessmen, plantation owners, or ship's captains. Others were carpenters, seamstresses, tailors, tavern owners, fisherman, or millers. Many residents were enslaved people, convict servants, and indentured servants., Indentured servants chose to enter their servitude for a set number of years. They received an agreed upon advance sum of money or passage across the Atlantic Ocean for their work. Convict servants were found guilty of a crime in Great Britain and were sentenced from seven to fourteen years unpaid labor in the colonies. Many of the enslaved people in colonial America were kidnapped from Africa, sold as property to colonists, and forced to work their entire lives with no compensation or very little chance of freedom., During the colonial era, ships linked the colonies with Great Britain and the rest of the world. Travel of both people and cargo was an important part of the town's economy. Changes in shipping and travel routes led to London Town's downfall. As Annapolis and Baltimore grew in prominence, London Town faded. By the end of the American Revolution, only William Brown's tavern, a few wooden structures, and the ferry remained of the once thriving Chesapeake port town.