Welcome Aboard, Virtual Shipmates!

All Aboard in Havre de Grace

This glorious fall day finds me in the port city of Havre de Grace. Pride II is berthed in the Frank Hutchins Memorial Park next to the Lantern Queen, a paddle wheel boat.

During the summer months, you can book passage on the Lantern Queen and cruise down Chesapeake Bay by paddle power. The promise of winter to come has ended many of the tourist attractions along Chesapeake Bay. The hot sleepy summer days are over and the crisp hearty breezes billow the sails and give every sailor many a thrilling ride. I hope to share with you my journey back in time as I revisit Maryland history. I hope to discover more about the industry, transportation, plants, animals, and how the people of coastal Maryland live and play. Who knows - when we have finished this leg of the journey, maybe the word MARYLAND will mean something new and special to you.

Have you ever thought about how things always seem to change? For instance, how your own family has grown and changed? How the leaves on the trees change in fall? Or how new buildings are put up and old ones torn down? Things constantly change over time. Looking back on these changes is called history. It is the study of how people and things cause other things to changes.

Native Americans - The First Settlers

Did you know that your home may be right where a Native American hunter once searched for deer? Native Americans lived in the Maryland region hundreds of years before the first people from Europe came. Back in the early 1600's when Captain John Smith first sailed up the Bay, about 5,000 to 7,000 Native Americans lived here in the "Land of Pleasant Living." The word "Chesapeake" is a Native American word meaning "the Great Shellfish Bay." Most of these Native Americans belonged to a large group known as Algonquins (Al-gon-quins). On the Western shore of Maryland, they were known as the Piscataways (Pis-cot'-a-ways). On the Eastern shore, they were known as the Nanticokes (Nan'-ti-cokes). These people were fishermen, farmers, and hunters.

But the Susquehannocks (Sus-que-han'ocks) who lived on the Susquehanna River up here near Havre de Grace were warriors. They belonged to a group of tribes to the north called the Iroquois (Ear'-o-quois). They lived in the area where Havre de Grace stands today. The hunting grounds of the Susquehannocks extended from what is now the Pennsylvania line down to Annapolis and down the Eastern Shore past Kent Island to the Choptank River. They often attacked smaller, more peaceful tribes.

Before the 1600s when only Native Americans lived in the Maryland region, changes were in store for these people. Why? Because people from Europe came to explore. In 1608, Captain John Smith and 14 men sailed up the Bay. They explored every river and stream. They searched for good harbors for ships and places to build homes for people. Havre de Grace was one place John Smith visited. He wrote about this place being a perfect harbor and good spot for living.

Map by John Smith, 1608, from the Maryland State Archives. Click on the map for a larger image.

His maps had many details and were accurate. He had very good reasons for making accurate maps. What do you think those reasons were?

People in England wanted to find a better place to live. Captain Smith's diary tells us what we know about these Native Americans. The Captain's exploration of the Bay all the way to the Susquehanna River was observed by the Susquehannock tribe. His coming meant the beginning of the end of the Native Americans' way of life as the intruders began to take possession of their shores.

When the Arc and the Dove arrived with the first white settlers, they had many friendly meetings with Native Americans who were farmers. One tribe even traded their village full of houses and their corn fields. The Native Americans helped the settlers build houses for themselves and plant crops. The Native Americans grew maise (corn) and tobacco. Tobacco became important because it was used as money. Tobacco was considered a sacred herb, a precious gift from the Great Spirit. Hogsheads (barrels) of tobacco traveled back to England. Trading with the northern tribes was entirely different because these tribes were warriors and hunters.

Trading today continues as barges and ships make their way up and down Chesapeake Bay to East Coast cities and to the world.

In the upper reaches of the Bay, the first settlement by Europeans was on an island next to Havre de Grace. It was settled by Edward Palmer in 1622 and became known as Palmer's Island. In the early 1630's, the island was used by William Claiborne as a post for fur trading with the Native Americans. Its location gave him a virtual monopoly on the Susquehannocks' fur trade. In 1643, Lord Baltimore used the island as a stronghold against the Susquehannocks. In 1658, Nathaniel Utie was granted the island as a place to settle and trade with the Native Americans. He changed the name of the island to Spesutie, meaning Utie's Hope. He built a manor house which was later used by J. Pierpont Morgan, the New York City financier, for a hunting and fishing lodge.

Today the island is used as a place to test explosives by the U. S. Army. It's part of Aberdeen Proving Ground. As we sailed by, we heard the detonation of explosives being tested. It is thought that the location of this successful trading post was the reason Havre de Grace was founded directly across from it on the mainland.

Early Havre de Grace History

In 1658, some of the land that is now part of Havre de Grace was given to Godfrey Harmer. It became known as "Harmer's Town." Then in 1659 when the land was reassigned, it became known as "Stockett's Town." This deed says it is at the mouth of the Susquehanna River at a place called Point Conquest. Today, that Point is known as Point Concord and a very famous lighthouse is located there here.

In 1695 the first ferry was established in the Havre de Grace area and soon the town became known as "Susquehanna Lower Ferry." Shortly after that, a stage coach line was started that ran between Baltimore and Philadelphia, along The Old Post Road. It stopped at the ferry dock. This trip took five days and passengers endured many hardships, such as impassable roads, coaches overturned, and horses dying from overwork. Can you imagine spending five days in a large box on wheels without any comforts?

In 1737, a ferry terminal was built, along with a tavern constructed by John Rodgers. However, the presence of the ferry did not make a town. By 1783, only seven houses had been built. Most north-south travel was by boat on the Bay. However, during the Revolutionary War when the British Navy controlled the waterways, overland routes became widely used and Havre de Grace grew. It's location at the mouth of a great river was an important asset. In 1783, the first canal was begun and Havre de Grace was on its way to becoming one of the Bay's major shipping centers with great commercial potential. The construction of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal and the Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal near Havre de Grace produced great advantages for the town's growing worldwide trade.

This is the original lockhouse built for the Susquehanna & Tidewater Canal in 1840. You can learn more about these important canals in the Maryland Exploration called Canals vs. Railroads: The Transportation Race.

Once again, this area underwent a name change, from Lower Susquehanna Ferry to Havre de Grace, which is how we know the town today. In 1782, the French General Lafayette passed by the spot on his way from Mount Vernon, where he visited General Washington, to Philadelphia to attend a meeting of the Continental Congress. When he viewed the beauty of the harbor near the ferry nestled at the junction of the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay, he is said to have exclaimed, "C'est Le Havre!" In 1789, Havre de Grace was seriously considered as the location for the Capital of the United States of America. Washington, DC won by only one vote!

George Washington and many other patriots traveled to Havre de Grace on the Old Post Road many times. Washington frequently stayed at the home of John Rodgers. This building survived the fire started by British invaders in 1813.

War of 1812 in Havre de Grace

The raid of Havre de Grace by Sir George Cockburn, commander of the British Royal Navy, was staged from Spesutia Island. The raid took place on May 3, 1813. The island provided Cockburn with an excellent position for terrorizing the surrounding countryside in the Upper Bay. His success convinced Admiral Cockburn that he could do anything he liked, whenever he liked. None of the further British successes in Maryland or Washington, DC would have occurred without his initial success at Havre de Grace.

Although the townsfolk were aware of the impending invasion by the British, they had grown tired of false alarms. But on May 3, 1813, 15 to 20 barges filled with British troops approached Concord Point just outside the town. A few guns were fired by the American militia. As the hissing rockets set the houses on fire, the enemy landed. Within two hours they had sacked and burned the town. It was in ruins.

Although the Concord Point Lighthouse wasn't standing during the famous events that took place that May 3, 1813, it serves as a reminder that peaceful Havre de Grace was once a battleground.

Go to Part 2 of the November 15, 1999 Log