Mixing chronological narrative with a full ecological portrait, anthropologists Helen C. Rountree and Thomas E. Davidson have reconstructed the culture and history of Virginia's and Maryland's Eastern Shore Indians from A.D. 800 until the last tribes disbanded in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. In Eastern Shore Indians of Virginia and Maryland, the reader learns not only the characteristics and traditions of each tribe but also the plants and animals that were native to each ecozone and were essential components of the Indians' habitat and diet. Rountree and Davidson convincingly demonstrate how these geographical and ecological differences translated into cultural differences among the tribes and shaped their everyday lives. Making use of exceptional primary documents, including county records dating as far back as 1632, Rountree and Davidson have produced a thorough and fascinating glimpse of the lives of Eastern Shore Indians that will enlighten general readers and scholars alike.

The dissolution of the ill-starred Virginia Company in 1624 left Virginia -- now England's first royal colony -- without a formal raison d'etre. Most historians have suggested that the nascent local societies were anarchic, under the thrall of violent and unscrupulous men. James Perry asserts the opposite: The Formation of a Society on Virginia's Eastern Shore, 1615-1655 depicts emergent social cohesion. In a model of network analysis, Perry mines county court records to trace landholders through four decades -- their land, families, neighborhoods, local and offshore economic relations, and institutions. A wealth of statistics documents their development from rudimentary beginnings to a more highly articulated society capable of resolving conflict and working toward communal good. Perry's methodology will serve as a model for analyzing other new settlements, particularly those lacking the close-knit religious bonds and contractual foundations of New England towns. His conclusions will reshape notions of the development of early Chesapeake society. Originally published in 1990. A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the latest in digital technology to make available again books from our distinguished backlist that were previously out of print. These editions are published unaltered from the original, and are presented in affordable paperback formats, bringing readers both historical and cultural value.

The history of the Delmarva Peninsula is inextricably entwined with the story of its railroads. The earliest railroads were short, locally funded lines. The dream to connect Norfolk directly to Eastern Seaboard cities farther north was first realized by the New York, Philadelphia & Norfolk Railroad in the 1880s. The line ran north-south along the peninsula to Cape Charles City, Virginia, where freight cars were loaded onto barges for the trip across the Chesapeake Bay. This line was eventually absorbed by the giant Pennsylvania Railroad, and the ferry service was eclipsed when the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel was completed in 1964. For more than a century, though, railroads played a critical role in the development of the Eastern Shore. Regional historian Lorett Treese tells this story.

The Eastern Shore covers the counties of Accomack and Northampton.

During the American Revolution, the Eastern Shore was filled with both Patriots and Loyalists. Both sides attacked the other using privateers - pirates to their enemies. These enterprising locals plundered and pillaged, and motivated by profit, some even fought for both sides. The Chesapeake Bay was the site of one of the last and bloodiest naval battles of the Revolution, and privateers were instrumental in the eventual American victory in the war. Author Leonard Szaltis uses local records to bring these legendary Eastern Shoremen and their exploits to life.