Assateague Island - History

History

Like all barrier islands, Assateague has changed in form over the years. The structure of barrier islands determined by movement of sand in the littoral zone, the land-facing side of the island. At one time, the island was connected to the lowest point of Fenwick Island. However, in August 1933, a hurricane created an inlet south of Ocean City, Maryland. This inlet separated the two landforms. Normally, it would have silted back in due to the littoral drift that ran from north to south. However, after the storm, between 1933 and 1935 a permanent system of artificial jetties was built to preserve the inlet as a navigation channel. As a result, the island has drifted considerably westward, and the two landmasses are now over 1 km apart. While this process has benefitted Ocean City, creating wider beaches and better fishing access, it caused erosion problems on Assateague.

Between 1933 and the early 1960s, federal interest in creating a national seashore on the island alternated with periodic pushes for development. In 1950, a 15 mile section of the Maryland side of Assateague was platted for development, and a paved road, Baltimore Boulevard, was constructed to traverse the new development. A storm in 1962 destroyed or covered most of Baltimore Boulevard, and many of the structures on the island were destroyed. Although some private landowners on the island supported re-development, by this time the state of Maryland generally supported a national seashore and legislation was introduced in the United States Congress. After Congressional efforts did not produce final legislation in 1964, new legislation in 1965 was successful and Assateague Island National Seashore was formed.