Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1885-04-11
The Eastern Shore.
oRRls A. BROWNE. Accomac c, H. Va.

This fair region of the United
States, which tor so many years
has been closed to the outer world,
is now open through easy and rap
id communication, both north and
south, offering unsurpassed induce
ments to new settlers to make it a
home, not only for business, but for
pleasure. 1t is known as the East
ern Shore of Virginia, and is COM
prlsed of tile two lower, OF Virgin
ia counties, which, with the Fast
ern Shore OF Maryland and the
State of Delaware, compose the
Peninsula. 1t is seventy miles long,
with an average width of ten miles,
with Chesapeake Bay on the west,
and the Atlantic Ocean on the
east. Has numerous arms and in
lets from both, extending into the
main, and forming numbers o.
islands acting as breakwaters to
the higher land. The salt air, from
the surrounding sea, and the warm
temperature of the water in the
Gulf Stream, make the climate
miltler and less liable to frost than
other localities of lower latitude
Until recently, communication with
other parts of the country has been
Ivy steamboats, AMI sail vesselS-,a
fine line of Stannch steamers con
Meeting us on the Bay side with
Baltimore: these took the staple
crops, tie sweet and white pota
toes, together with onions, peas,
cabbayes, asparagus and small
fruits, to the markets Of Baltimore
and New York. bringing return
to the producers OF Il million and Il
half dollars.
In addition to these f,cilities,the
building of the New York. Phlla
delphi;l and Norfolk Railroad with
in the last year, from Delmaf, on
the dividing inc between the States
of Delaware and Maryland, to Cape
Charles. at the mouth of Chesapeake
Bay, and from thence making the
city of Norfolk by;l line of fastand
elegant steamers, completes the
chain of the great short line north
and south, and lessons the time Of
travel some ten hours between
New York and points south. The
road is admirably located in these
two counties, running down the
centre, without ten feet of grade,
and an air line, with rails Of first
class steel, and an equipment not
surpassed. 1t is said to be pro-
tege of the Pennsylvania Railroad,
which inSureS its success and safe
management.
The soil of this section Is light
sandy loan, warm and easily titled,
rarely requiring more than one
horse TO fallow the land; it's subSoll
is red clay. The crops grown are
corn, oats, wheat, sweet and white
POTATOES. All the small fruits and
garden vegetables come early and
are prolific, with proper care, and
now, with quick and competing
transportation by steamboats, and
railroads to twenty millions of peo-
pie in the north and west, this for
gotten land must soon he converted
into the market garden for the
metropolitan cities of the country,
and become to them in these pro
duets, what Florida (whose stu
alton with reference 10 the intiu-
ence from the salt water surround.
, ing her is similar to our own), with
. her tropical fruits is to the rest OF
the United States.
The timber is principally the
! long leaf pine. the varieties of oak.
hickory, walnut, poplar, chestnut,
maple, lockwood and gum. The
'shatter," or leaves from the pine,
are used as absorbents for stables
! and cattle yards. Large quantities
: of manure used in growing the pc
tato, are thus made. The lands are
1 for the most part poor, the result
of lad farming under the old sllve
} ~ system, and a failure to
! adopt proper system since the lie
5 groes were freed. There is, how
ever, no soil that the writer has ev
;. er seen, that responds so readily
! to little attention, and yields
such handsome returns for the
capita! invested. Lands are for
l sale at various prices, from ten to
fifty dollars per acre. The price,
l however, is no indication OF the
quality of the soil, but is fixed by
f. the sentiment Of the holder, and
: his peculiar preference or attach.
= ment to one locality over another,
marking strongly the individuality
: Of the original English settler, OF
whom these people are the Oldest
T in the United States; retaining to
a marked degree the quaint man
ners and expressions of the mother
country a century and more ago
The population numbers some thir-
ty-three thousand, that of Accomac,
the upper county, being twenty
four thousand four hundred and
eight, of which fifteen thousand
and fifteen are white, and line
thousand three hundred and nine
ty three are black, and forty eight