Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1940-07-12
WINNING ESSAY
SUBMITTED BY
MISS CROCKETT

of Judge and Mrs. James M. Crockett,
in county competition for the "Old
Home Prize, established by the late
John S. McMaster. Miss Crockett is
a graduate in this years class at the
Pocomoke City High School, and her
essay won the prize:
America was settled by a strong
and vigorous people drawn from all
the nations of the world. They were,
for the most part, hardworking and
ambitious, ever seeking opportunities
to better their lot and new resources
to add to their comforts and aid in
their occupations.
The men and women who settled on
the Eastern Shore were not excep-
tions. In those first long years in the
history of our country they worked in
their tanneries and smithies, toiled
on their small farms and in their Of
fees, ever alert to new discoveries yet
never realizing that natural re-
source lay at their very doors.
For, at the beginning of the nine
teenth century bog iron ore was dis
covered about five miles from Snow
Hill, in the swamp land along Nassa-
wango Creek. In some way the news
travelled to Philadelphia and inter-
ested a group of business men there
who determined, with some others
from Maryland, to develop the de-
post. Through their efforts, on March
IL, 1929, the General Assembly Of
Maryland passed can Act to incorpor-
ate The Maryland Iron Company"
BY that act Beale Randall, Thomas
Finley, Hugh Boyle, Joseph Patter-
son, Shepard Leakin, John Shriver,
Talbot Jones, William Freeman, and
Alexander Bullitt were appointed
commissioners with the power to open
a subscription book. The corporation
was empowered to engage in the bust
ness of manufacturing and vending
iron.
In November 1880, the company be-
gan to acquire several tracts of land,
covering approximately five thousand
acres. The bulk of these lands was
secured through the agency of Arthur
MILKY of Sussex County, Delaware.
The holdings of the Iron Company
consisted of both forest and swamp
lands. The swamp was full of gum
and cypress and here the bog ore or
Infinite was deposited. In the forest
grew pines which were burned for
charcoal.
To this country came the men who
had bought "The Furnace Tract"
each confident that they had already
made fortune. They set to work and
built the furnace stack, the hotel, the
store, and the twenty-three or tweny-
four one and a half story ho1ses in
which the workers lived.
The method of production of the
iron ingots was much like that of to-
day. Bog ore was dug from the
swamp along the shores of Nassa-
wango Creek and the charcoal needed
was made from pine logs cut near
the furnace and burned in dirt
mounds. An earthen ramp and wood
en- bridge ran up to the top of the
furnace and up this a blind mule,
since one with sight would not have
gone up such place, hauled the loads
of ore, charcoal and oyster shells to be
dumped in the top. Air was pumped
in by many bellows through openings
in the sides and the iron and Stag were
drawn out from the hearths at the
bottom. The iron was cast into in
gots and carried down the creek on
barges to be loaded on sailing YES
sells for transportation to Baltimore
and Philadelphia.
But the business did not prosper as
the investors had hoped, and soon, in
fact as early as 1882, creditors, the
largest of whom were Philadelphians
began to recover judgments against
the company. Still hopeful, they con-
tinued to buy land, but it was of nc
avail for their creditors continued to
press for payment. So on July 13
1886, the sheriff of Worcester County
sold all of the property to Benjamin
Jones of Philadelphia, who was the
owner of 1.-THE Furnace" for a brief
period of six months.
These were busy and exciting times
Rich friends of Mr.. Jones came to the
comparative seclusion of the country
and the hotel became the scene Of
constant gambling and frequent quar-
reling. AS result, legend goes, il
one of the gambling games sports
man was murdered and for fear Of
public discovery, the body was bidder