Newsletter of
The Maryland State Archives
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Newsletter of The Maryland State Archives |
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| Vol. 19 No. 10 |
mdsa.net |
October 17, 2005 |
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Roads in Kent County, 1765-1794 by Pat Melville During a period of road expansion from Baltimore City northward and westward, little state legislation dealt with ground transportation on the Eastern Shore. Only three laws between 1765 and 1794 specifically pertained to roads in Kent County, all involving access to mills. A 1791 law (Ch. 23) authorized John Wilson of George to replace an unstable mill dam in a different location and lay out a road to the new site. Commissioners were appointed to survey and construct the route and to ascertain damages to land owners. No provision was made for the means to make these payments. Usually the petitioner was required to provide the funds. Another 1791 law (Ch. 44) directed commissioners to determine the necessity for a road between New Market and Isaac Perkins' mill, and, with a positive response, to survey and construct the route and to ascertain damages. In this case the county justices were given the task of deciding how to pay the affected landowners - by the petitioners, parties interested in the road, or taxation. The legislation specified the continuation of the existing road from March's Lane to New Market. Legislation enacted in 1793 (Ch. 41) dealt with roads to John Newel's grist mill at the head of Still Pond Creek. Newell and other landowners along the roads hired Jeremiah Ford and Donaldson Yates to survey and redirect the existing private roads and to determine damages. Newel then petitioned the General Assembly to have the routes declared public and to have a jury decide the damages due the minor heirs of John Unick. Newel agreed to assume responsibility for paying funds due the landowners. Kent County Court (Minutes) in series C1086 provide other information about road activity administrated at the local level. Petitions filed with the court mostly pertained to route changes and the establishment or obstruction of private roadways. The latter transportation system was designed to give residents access to public roads and facilities such as mills, churches, courthouses, and wharfs. In addition, the court justices annually appointed overseers to maintain roads. Most petitions for road changes came from landowners who wanted routes that were less disruptive to their fields. In 1779 Dr. John Scott requested movement of the present road to the head of his plantation Pentridge. The court agreed to let him make the alterations, under the supervision of two justices. In 1780 this road was included in the assignment to overseer William Kendall: "Your Roads are from Ambrose's lane to a lane at the head of Doctor Scotts Land, called Pentridge, then through and down the present large road until it intersects the Old Main road leading down to Cackaway Neck; from thence to Charles Tilden's Gate, and so on the large Main Road down to Cackaway point." Another indication of the importance of crops occurred in June 1789 when the court postponed the opening of part of a new road until the flax was harvested. Benjamin Riley and John Greenwood in 1782 asked for an alteration to a road going through their lands. The change would cause the route to run alongside Riley's cleared land and to intersect the main road between New Market and Perkins Mill two hundred yards from the existing location. The justices granted the request and appointed two justices to review the work. Abraham Falconer owned lots in Bridgetown and in 1783 wanted the road altered to run on the division line between his lots and those owned by the heirs of Thomas Gilpin. A court ordered review did not appear in later minutes, and Falconer withdrew the petition in 1786. In 1785 the justices received a petition from thirty-six individuals for the closing of a road. They conceded that community interests could override private concerns. "They hope, however, that this Maxim will not be found to mitigate against the prayer, they are about to make to your Worships. They apprehend that the road from the said Simon Wilmer's Mill to the George Town Road, although a great burthen to them, is of little, if any, importance to the public. They therefore pray your Worships permission to stop the same up." The court granted the request. The county justices seemed to doubt their authority to deal with obstructions in roadways. In 1785 James Ringgold, Jr., owner of Plains, described a long standing road from that tract to the main road from Chestertown to Fairley. Now John Burk, a tenant of Anthony Benning, was blocking the road, and Ringgold wanted it reopened. The court dismissed the petition saying it lacked the authority to take action. A year later Ringgold successfully got around the issue by applying for a private roadway. In June 1786 John Thrift filed a similar petition. He owned an island in the mouth of Island Creek, and for many years had used a road through the
Many of the annual appointments of overseers included
descriptions of the areas assigned to each individual, such
as:
Book Review by Robert Barnes Worcester County Maryland Orphans Court Proceedings Volume 3, MH23: 1816-1832. By David W. Heise. Westminster: Willow Bend Books, 2004. Pp. 501. Paper. Indexed. $41.00 plus $4.00 USPS p+h or $6.00 for UPS p+h. Maryland residents should add 5% sales tax. The title is a little misleading because this book really includes four other libers of Orphans Court Proceeding: MH 24, MH 28, LPS 5, and LPS 8, covering the years 1816-1832. In addition to the general index, there are four indices pertaining to slaves and free Negroes, both with and without surnames. Working from the original records at the Maryland State Archives, Heise has abstracted information pertaining to guardianships, apprentices, and probates of estates where minors are concerned. He has used the original spellings as the names appear in the records. The entries are arranged chronologically, allowing the researcher to see all of the business conducted on a given day. Books like this contain important genealogical links, and they also supply fascinating details of the lives of the inhabitants of the county. For students of Eastern Shore family history and local history, the book is highly recommended.
Copies may be ordered from the publisher, Willow Bend Books,
65 East Main Street, Westminster, MD, 21157-5026.
Excerpts from the
Salisbury Advertiser,
October 14, 1905
Surprisingly, this edition of the
Salisbury Advertiser
contained few of the usual notices about personal events such as
marriages, deaths, fires, and accidents. Instead, articles
concentrated on news about businesses and the upcoming
referendum on a state constitutional amendment.
A front page article discussed the increase in manufacturing in
Salisbury, especially on Mill St. The W.A. Chew Concrete Works
made water and air proof vaults for graves. Brittingham &
Parsons was enlarging its grain mill which produced two grades
of flour and several kinds of feed, including bran, meal, table
hominy, and buckwheat. The F.C. Todd Brick Plant manufactured
concrete, ornamental, and face bricks.
Even Chapter 2 of the "History of Mardela" was business
oriented. The area was initially named Boiling Springs and then
changed to Barren Creek Springs. In 1894 Thomas Bacon, engaged
in bottling water, combined the first syllables of Maryland and
Delaware to come up with the name Mardela for the town. "The
name Barren savors too much of unproductiveness, and this will
not do for our fertile soil." The writer was predicting that in
ten to twelve years Mardela would become the second largest city
on the Eastern Shore as it attracted manufacturing.
To be voted on in November 1905 was an amendment to the Maryland
Constitution that added a literacy requirement to the right to
vote. At the time of registration the potential voters would be
required to read and explain the state constitution. Those
unable to read would have the document read to them by the
registration officer and then give an explanation.
A question and answer column portrayed the purpose of the
amendment in very stark terms. It began with "Q. What are the
issues involved in this campaign? A. There is only one
issue--Negro Suffrage." and ended with "Q. Who should favor the
pending Amendment? A. Every man who believes a majority of the
white people should control the State Government."
Fortunately, the literacy amendment was rejected by the
voters of the state by a vote of 104,286 to 70,227. |
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THE ARCHIVISTS' BULLDOG Founded 1987 |
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Edward C. Papenfuse, State Archivist Kathy Beard, Production Editor Patricia V. Melville, Editor Mimi Calver, Assistant Editor Lynne MacAdam, Web Editor
The Maryland State Archives is an independent agency in the Office of the Governor and is advised by the Hall of Records Commission. The Chairman of the Hall of Records Commission is the Honorable Robert M. Bell, Chief Judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals. The Archivists' Bulldog is issued monthly to publicize records collections, finding aids, and other activities of the Archives and its staff. The Editor welcomes editorial comments and contributions from the public. The Archives maintains a web site on the Internet at http://mdsa.net |
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