Oysters are of great importance to Maryland.Many people make their
living from them. Although the industry here has been in a steep decline
for the past few decades, its impact on the state's economy remains
substantial.
So starts Hedeen's outstanding book, THE OYSTER, published by Tidewater Publishers. He is a former professor of biology at the Salisbury State University, Salisbury, Maryland. He lives in the heart of the oyster producing region of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, an integral part of the Chesapeake Bay.
The oyster has influenced human events by inciting enmity between peoples even though it is the most docile of all animals. It leads a solitary and sedentary life. Oyster wars have been fought over territorial rights to harvest this creature. And many men have died to establish this right.
Oysters are of great importance to Maryland.Many people make their
living from them. Although the industry here has been in a steep decline
for the past few decades, its impact on the state's economy remains
substantial.
In early Maryland history certain Indian tribes along the rivers of the Chesapeake Bay at certain times of the year lived mainly on oysters which they ate raw or roasted. Large middens (refuse heaps) of oyster shells are common through the region. On the Nanticoke River, for example, evidence for the oyster as food for the Indians and even for the early settlers can be observed by casual strolling along the beaches. As the river has eroded the shoreline over the centuries, various distinct strata are exposed, giving insight to the manner of life of people occupying this area.
It is well to interject here that the dauntless Captain John Smith explored this very region of the Nanticoke in 1608. Few things escaped the notice of Smith.In his journals he wrote of the abundance of oysters, crabs and other various marine creatures in these waters.
Though many of the English settlers began to appreciate the native American oysters and ate them raw, roasted, stewed and even pickled, they were soon recognized as a valuable natural resource. After the first log cabins were built, conflicts erupted over ownership of oysters in the riparian jurisdictions of the settlements. Thus, the infamous oyster wars of the Chesapeake began.
The problem goes back for almost two centuries. Virginia held ownership to its portion of the Chesapeake Bay and exacted a toll from Marylanders seeking access to the sea. Maryland, on the other hand, owned the entire Potomac River. It retaliated by forbidding Virginia to fish there. The Potomac River is one of the best oyster breeding grounds in the country, if not the world. Naturally, the Virginians lusted after these large and plentiful oysters that grew in waters lapping at their very shoreline. Eventually, an agreement between the two states was reached, the Compact of 1785.
This was an uneasy accord, each state chafing under the other's
regulations. Attesting further to this uneasy truce,an excerpt from
an article appearing in the Washington Post on November 4, 1947 states
as follows:
''Already the sound of rifle fire has echoed across the
Potomac River. Only fifty miles from Washington men are shooting at
one another. The night is quiet until suddenly shots snap through the
air. Possibly a man is dead, perhaps a boat is taken, but the oyster
war will go on the next night and the next.''
The Compact of 1785 continued in force until l962 when President John Kennedy signed the Potomac Fisheries Bill. This bill reaffirms the governing of the river by a bistate commission.
Only then did the oyster wars end, more or less.
Annotations:
The Oyster
by Robert Hedeen, Ph.D. Tidewater Publishers, Centerville, MD 21617 ISBN 0-87033-3585
The Oyster Wars of Chesapeake Bay
by John R. Wennersten, Ph. D. Tidewater Publishers, Centerville, MD 21617 ISBN 0-87033-263-5