Scientists estimate that, until 1900, the water level of the Chesapeake Bay rose at the rate of three feet every thousand years. Alarmingly enough, the bay rose by one foot in the twentieth century alone, and for evidence of this dramatic change one need only observe the effects of rising water on the islands of the Chesapeake Bay, which slowly are slipping from sight. A retired oceanographer who first conducted research on the bay in the 1950s, William B. Cronin here supplies a survey of the changing fortunes of these forty-odd islands, from Garrett in the north to Gwynn and James islands to the south. Cronin's historical and scientific tour outlines their erosion, their loss of marshland, and the rich if changing human experience they have supported for generations. He draws on imagery that includes the work of celebrated local photographer A. Aubrey Bodine, colonial and state records, newspaper pieces, and his own personal and professional experience. Historic nautical charts, compared to current data from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, leave no doubt of the crisis many of the islands face. On one, Holland, rising water in the late 1910s forced townspeople to move their houses by barge to the mainland. On another, Barren, a sizable hunting lodge housed guests as late as the 1970s but by 1985 had become a wreck beneath the water. An appendix documents the many small islands that have dropped entirely from view since the seventeenth century.

About the Author
William B. Cronin spent his career with the Johns Hopkins Chesapeake Bay Institute, over the years contributing many articles to Chesapeake Bay Magazine.

Reviews
A formidable research effort, Disappearing Islands of the Chesapeake makes for hours of escapist perusal by armchair mariners. Delmarva Quarterly 2005 I guarantee you will not lose interest as he isle-hops... touching more than 40 in all-and all disappearing. -- Bill Burton Bay Weekly 2005 Cronin tells an engaging story that's richly underscored by an abundance of vintage maps and archival photographs. Baltimore Magazine 2005 This is very probably the definitive book about the Chesapeake Bay Islands, especially those that are gone with the erosion. -- John Goodspeed Easton Star Democrat 2005 Time, tide, storms and resulting erosion are the enemies... making Cronin's book a valuable resource for future generations. -- Jackie Nickel The Mariner 2005 An island-by-island chronicle of the bay that documents the islands' earliest native and non-native American settlers. and their current fate. -- Catherine Pierre Johns Hopkins Magazine 2005


Awards
Commended for Massachusetts Book Award (MassBook) (Children's Picture) 2001.



Book Information
ISBN 9780801874352
Author William B. Cronin
Format Hardback
Page Count 200
Imprint Johns Hopkins University Press
Publisher Johns Hopkins University Press
Weight(grams) 930g
Dimensions(mm) 279mm * 216mm * 17mm