Fall is the perfect time to visit the Eastern Shore. Traveling across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge is easier now that the beach season is over. And – now that the kids are back in school – it’s time to escape for a few days to St. Michael’s, Md. Whether you want to go with your girlfriends, your honey, or pack up the family for a weekend getaway, St. Michael’s has a lot of attractions for all.

Charm town

St. Michael’s is a quaint waterfront village on the Eastern Shore in Talbot County, situated on a picturesque peninsula between Tilghman Island, Easton and Oxford, and only an hour-and-a-half drive from the Baltimore-Washington area.

St. Michael’s is filled with enchanting inns, charming bed and breakfasts, gourmet restaurants and unique specialty shops that invite you to take a leisurely stroll to explore this historic hamlet.

The striking thing about this town is the friendliness of the locals. They all seem to know each other and welcome visitors into their small-town world. Some have lived here their entire lives and others have traded the hustle and bustle of the city for a slower-paced life.

Some are weekenders who purchase second homes in this peaceful haven. According to Leslie Stevenson, realtor for Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc. in St. Michael’s, what attracts people to purchase a second home here is the ambience of the shops, the antiques and proximity to maritime living. She said second homeowners come from all over: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New England, Washington, D.C., and Virginia.

However, no matter how long residents have called St. Michael’s their home, they all have a passion for this Mayberry-like shore town and will defend it to keep its charming image.

History of St. Michael’s

Speaking of defending, during the War of 1812, residents of St. Michael’s were forewarned of a British attack. To defend their town, the wily locals actually joined together and hoisted lanterns to the masts of ships and in the tops of trees, so the British aimed too high and mostly missed the buildings. Only one house on Green Street was hit. A cannonball penetrated the roof and rolled down the staircase as Mrs. Merchant carried her infant daughter downstairs. The house still exists as a private residence and is listed on the walking tour as the Cannonball House.

St. Michael’s derived its name from the Episcopal Parish established in 1677. The church attracted settlers who engaged in tobacco growing and shipbuilding.

Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum

Perhaps best known for the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, St. Michael’s visitors will enjoy the museum’s 18-acre waterfront park setting to encounter Chesapeake Bay history first-hand. A visit to the museum offers accessible history through real people, real work and original exhibits.

But this is no ordinary museum. The collection of Chesapeake Bay watercraft is the largest in existence, numbering about 85 boats. Part of the collection, including crabbing skiffs, workboats, log canoes and one-design boats, is on display in the Small Boat Shed, while six of the collection’s largest vessels are on a floating display at the museum’s docks.

The museum features attractions, such as:

● The Hooper Strait Lighthouse, which is an 1879 screwpile lighthouse. It is available for touring and overnight events for family, Scout and youth groups.

● A working boat yard, in which shipwrights and apprentices share the tradition of building and restoring wooden bay boats and demonstrate maritime skills. 

● An Oystering Exhibit, where you can step aboard the skipjack E.C. Collier and into the history, conflicts, tools and people of the Chesapeake Bay’s oystering industry.

Skipjack tours

The museum also features skipjack tours, year-round festivals and education programs for all ages.

The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum’s boat tours and skipjack rides are given by experienced watermen, like Captain Ed Farley who was an oysterman for over 30 years. He said he “loves to see people’s eyes open” as he makes them understand about the bay ecology and the collapse of the oyster industry. In 1977, Farley worked with James Michener, who was researching his book “Chesapeake.” In 1985, Farley helped to develop and operate a sailing skipjack environmental educational program with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and over the next seven years carried in excess of 14,000 school children.

By 1990, the working fleet of skipjacks was diminishing along with the oyster population due to two viruses. In an effort to save another of these last skipjacks, Farley sold his Stanley Norman (built in 1902) to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and purchased the H.M. Krentz, which he sails for maritime museum tours. With a lifelong interest in outdoor, environmental and experiential education, Farley keeps the heritage of the working skipjack alive and passes on his love for the bay to St. Michael’s visitors who take his tours.

For information on St. Michael’s attractions, visit www.tourtalbot.org.