Smith Island located in the Chesapeake Bay, is 12 miles off the coast of Maryland. The Island is made of up swampy marsh lands in both Maryland and Virginia and is only accessible by ferry.

Smith Island was discovered by Captain John Smith in 1608, but has been inhabited by Native Americans for more than 12,000 years. Currently Smith Island is home to about 300 year round residents, many have been there for generations. Before the Civil War, Smith Island was home to farmers, but then switched to crabbing and oystering after the war, due to an increase in demand for seafood.

Visitors today can enjoy the unique lifestyle within the three villages of the Island. Ewell village, is the largest of the three, offering restaurants, gift shops and a museum. Rhodes point, which has no restaurants but B&Bs and homes, both well maintained and abandoned. Lastly, Tylerton, which is on a separate island and is the smallest of the three villages. Here visitors are able to see how crabs are harvested.

The famous Smith Island Cakes are round cakes with seven-to-15 thin layers separated by chocolate frosting. These cakes can be found throughout the island.

Smith Island has a slower paced lifestyle that offers an experience of the Chesapeake Bay that feels the way it was generations ago.

Chesapeake Living offers more informaiton on the unique features and lifestyle of Smith Island.

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