Last month in our history column we learned about the early history of Kent Island through local Brent Lewis’s book “Remembering Kent Island.” This month we’re focusing on the latter half of his book, exploring how Kent Island developed into the community we call home today.
A few decades before the Bay Bridge was built, Kent Island was nearly taken by the government to be developed for a very different purpose. After World War One broke out, the United States government searched for a weapons testing spot that was both convenient and remote. They set their eyes on Kent Island, seeking to potentially displace 3,000 Kent Islanders and take large parts of the Island. While protesting against the government from taking their homes, Kent Islanders were called unpatriotic. With the help of a delegation including Senator James Kirwan, locals successfully fought back and thousands of people kept their homes. The headlines the next day read “Kent Island Is Not to Be Taken.”
The first span of the Bay Bridge was finished in the early 1950’s. At the time it was the third longest bridge in the world. Prior to the Bay Bridge, people traveling from the western to the eastern shore had to use a ferry. The ferry could only carry 180 cars an hour while the new Bay Bridge could carry over 1,500.
Sensing opportunity, a Baltimore real estate developer named David Nichols began buying up farmland as the bridge was being completed. He divided the land he bought into over 5,000 building lots, at a time when less than 3,000 people lived on the whole Island. Nichols ran into a variety of problems with his new development. There was no sewer system at the time, and the soggy ground made some of the land unbuildable. There also was less interest in waterfront property than there is now. Seeking to get out of his bad investment, Nichols tried to sell the land to the Navy to be used as a training station. Once again Kent Islanders banded together to protect their homes, and the government looked elsewhere.
While the Bay Bridge and the first round of developers brought some changes to Kent Island, it wasn’t until the 80’s that Kent Island really began to modernize. In the 80’s, a sewer system was developed that allowed for an explosion of development in Bay City, Cloverfields and Harbor View. The population of the Island doubled from 1980 to 2000. “Some people try to blame the Bay Bridge for all the development and new people moving to Kent Island,” Brent explained to me. “But Kent Island really didn’t change that much until decades after it was built.”
While some have a negative view of the development of Kent Island, Brent says that many local watermen he has spoken to have a nuanced and even positive view of all the changes. Brent explained that “When 12 families owned Kent Island, they could lose acres of land to erosion… and why would they care? When people are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for a quarter acre of land, they will do a lot to stop erosion. A lot of the folks I’ve interviewed have told me that if all the people hadn’t moved to Kent Island it might not really exist anymore.”
Brent Lewis’ book features tons of interesting stories and details we weren’t able to cover here, including how our local seafood was popularized, a history of folklore and legends on the Island and more. If you would like to read “Remembering Kent Island,” the book can be purchased from several local stores, Arcadia Publishing and Amazon.