Hog Island Part 2

Piece Description

Many shipwrecks occurred in this area on these treacherous shoals. In the early years before the market of waterfowl and shellfish, Hog Islanders made a living by salvaging shipwrecked vessels.

In 1851, the Federal Government built a lighthouse on the island. In 1875 the first lifesaving station was erected, a Methodist church in 1880 and in 1898 a hotel was built. By the late 1800’s Hog Island was making a name for itself as a sportsman’s paradise. The abundance of wildfowl and fish drew the “rich and famous” to the island. President Cleveland was a frequent visitor.

In 1888 the island community became known as Broadwater when the first post office came to the island. By the turn of the century there were two general stores, an elementary school, ice cream parlor and a community center known as the Red Onion, where dances were held.

The main livelihood of the islanders now was either catering to the wealthy sportsmen who came to the island, or by harvesting and shipping waterfowl and the seafood such as clams, oysters, scallops, fish and terrapin.

By the 1930’s the violent storms that had been ravishing the island over the years began to take its toll. Erosion finally doomed the little village of Broadwater on Hog Island. By the late 1930’s most of the residents of Hog Island had moved back to mainland of the Eastern Shore to villages and towns such as Willis Wharf, Oyster, Quimby, and Wachapreague. Most of the islanders moved their homes by barge to the mainland and also transported their dead from the island cemetery to cemeteries on the mainland. Today most of Hog Island is owned by The Nature Conservancy.