GRACE FOUNDATION OF TAYLORS ISLAND, MD
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  • About Taylors Island
    • History of Taylors Island
    • Directions and Driving Tour
    • Old Post Office
    • Tour Pamphlet
    • Self-Guiding Nature Trail
    • Map showing Taylors Island from 1670
    • 1877 Map of Taylors Island
    • Historic Structures >
      • Becky Phipps Cannon >
        • 1912 Balt. Sun Article - Cannon Blown Apart
        • Cannon re-dedication 1999
        • Cannon - MD Historical Trust Info
      • Historic Old School House >
        • Historic Schoolhouse (MD Historical Trust Info)
      • Ridgeton Hall >
        • Ridgeton Hall - Maryland Historical Trust Info >
          • Judge Levi Travers
      • General Store >
        • General Store (MD Historic Trust Info)
        • Christmas Eve General Store Tradition
      • Mulberry Grove >
        • The History of Mulberry Grove >
          • Article About Mulberry Grove
          • Silk Worms of Mulberry Grove
          • Mulberry Grove - MD Historic Trust Info
      • Spicer Bungalow
      • Kirwan Farm >
        • Maryland Historical Trust Info - Kirwin Farm
      • "The LeCompte" a/k/a "Cator" house >
        • Cator-LeCompte House (MD Historic Trust Info)
      • Other Structures (inventoried by the Maryland Historical Trust)
      • Old Windmill >
        • Windmill locations 1877
      • The Canning House >
        • Tomato Picking Time
    • 1920's - photos
    • Visit by sitting U.S. President
    • Geological Survey
    • Radio Program Transcript - 1969
  • Battle of the Ice Mound
    • Oral History of Battle of Ice Mound (as memorialized in 1931)
    • Audio Description of Battle
    • Bicentennial celebration of the battle >
      • Recognition for a well planned event
      • USPS recognition of Battle of Ice Mound Bicentennial
    • Floeberg 1936
    • British on Punch Island Creek
    • BRITISH ON SLAUGHTER CREEK
  • Churches
    • Grace Episcopal Church >
      • Interior of Grace Church
      • MD HISTORICAL TRUST INFO
      • The Story of the Bell
    • Chapel of Ease >
      • Interior Chapel
      • Interior Chapel from balcony
      • Historical Marker
      • MD HISTORIC TRUST INFO
    • Bethlehem "Brick" Church >
      • Interior photos
      • MD HISTORICAL TRUST INFO
      • Ministers of Bethlehem Church 1820--1900
      • Church Minutes (selected minutes 1860, 1873 & 1876)
    • Chaplain Memorial >
      • Interior Photos Chaplain Memorial Church
      • MD HISTORICAL TRUST INFO
    • Lane Methodist Episcopal Church >
      • Lane Church Images
      • MD HISTORIC TRUST INFO
    • Video Tour of Churches
    • History of Island Methodism
  • Cemeteries
    • Grace Foundation Graveyard Policy
    • Bethlehem Church Cemetery Records
    • Grace Episcopal Church Burial Records
    • Lane Cemetery
    • Robson Cemetery >
      • Robson Cemetery Grave Photos
    • Hoopers Point Cemetery
  • Notable Islanders
    • Early Islanders
    • Samuel M Travers
    • HON. LEVI D. TRAVERS
    • Dr. Washington A Smith
    • J. Hooper Bosley
    • Tall Family >
      • Family Burial Ground of Elijah Tall
    • THOMAS BROOME TRAVERS >
      • Thomas Broome Travers (genealogy)
    • Revolution
    • T. Reynolds Carpenter
  • Schools & Students
    • School used as museum
    • Schoolhouse MD Historical Trust Info
  • African American Schoolhouse
    • African American School - MD Historic Trust Info
  • Slaughter Creek & The Bridge
    • Old Store at bridge
    • Bridge to Meekins Neck
    • Ferry to Meekins Neck
  • Island Folklore
    • The Tea Set
    • The Story of Polly
    • Taylors Island During Prohibition
    • Clara Bow
    • The Tale of the Swan Decoy
  • Lists of Business Persons & Farmers
    • 1887
    • 1894-95 >
      • Wm. D. Travers
    • 1908-09
    • 1915-17
  • Taylors Island Ship Building
    • Travis Spicer & Sons Shipbuilders
    • Historic Ships of Taylors Island >
      • Moses Henry Geoghegan
  • Slaughter Creek Marina
    • Coast Guard Station Photo
  • James Island
    • James Island photos
    • James Island sketches
    • James Island Videos
    • Aerial Photos of James Island
    • James Island Articles
    • James Island School
    • Sika Deer of James Island
    • James Island Restoration
  • Remembrances from bygone days
    • History by Laura Robinson Navy -1977
    • Old mode of transportation
  • Grace Foundation History
    • Senator George L. Radcliffe
    • The Promise
    • 1st Meeting of Grace Foundation May 13, 1951
  • Membership Information
    • 2022 Membership Letter
    • 2020 Membership Letter
    • 2020 Membership Roster
    • Membership Application
    • 2019 Membership Letter
    • 2015 Membership Letter
  • Champion Trees of Taylors Island
    • Bicentennial Tree
    • Persimmon Tree
    • Post Oak
    • Trees harvested to be used as roads
  • Taylors Island Volunteer Fire Company
    • TIVFC articles
    • TIVFC Photos over the years
    • Tragic Fire
  • Transpeninsular Line
    • 1971 Article on Transpeninsular Line
  • Home
  • About Taylors Island
    • History of Taylors Island
    • Directions and Driving Tour
    • Old Post Office
    • Tour Pamphlet
    • Self-Guiding Nature Trail
    • Map showing Taylors Island from 1670
    • 1877 Map of Taylors Island
    • Historic Structures >
      • Becky Phipps Cannon >
        • 1912 Balt. Sun Article - Cannon Blown Apart
        • Cannon re-dedication 1999
        • Cannon - MD Historical Trust Info
      • Historic Old School House >
        • Historic Schoolhouse (MD Historical Trust Info)
      • Ridgeton Hall >
        • Ridgeton Hall - Maryland Historical Trust Info >
          • Judge Levi Travers
      • General Store >
        • General Store (MD Historic Trust Info)
        • Christmas Eve General Store Tradition
      • Mulberry Grove >
        • The History of Mulberry Grove >
          • Article About Mulberry Grove
          • Silk Worms of Mulberry Grove
          • Mulberry Grove - MD Historic Trust Info
      • Spicer Bungalow
      • Kirwan Farm >
        • Maryland Historical Trust Info - Kirwin Farm
      • "The LeCompte" a/k/a "Cator" house >
        • Cator-LeCompte House (MD Historic Trust Info)
      • Other Structures (inventoried by the Maryland Historical Trust)
      • Old Windmill >
        • Windmill locations 1877
      • The Canning House >
        • Tomato Picking Time
    • 1920's - photos
    • Visit by sitting U.S. President
    • Geological Survey
    • Radio Program Transcript - 1969
  • Battle of the Ice Mound
    • Oral History of Battle of Ice Mound (as memorialized in 1931)
    • Audio Description of Battle
    • Bicentennial celebration of the battle >
      • Recognition for a well planned event
      • USPS recognition of Battle of Ice Mound Bicentennial
    • Floeberg 1936
    • British on Punch Island Creek
    • BRITISH ON SLAUGHTER CREEK
  • Churches
    • Grace Episcopal Church >
      • Interior of Grace Church
      • MD HISTORICAL TRUST INFO
      • The Story of the Bell
    • Chapel of Ease >
      • Interior Chapel
      • Interior Chapel from balcony
      • Historical Marker
      • MD HISTORIC TRUST INFO
    • Bethlehem "Brick" Church >
      • Interior photos
      • MD HISTORICAL TRUST INFO
      • Ministers of Bethlehem Church 1820--1900
      • Church Minutes (selected minutes 1860, 1873 & 1876)
    • Chaplain Memorial >
      • Interior Photos Chaplain Memorial Church
      • MD HISTORICAL TRUST INFO
    • Lane Methodist Episcopal Church >
      • Lane Church Images
      • MD HISTORIC TRUST INFO
    • Video Tour of Churches
    • History of Island Methodism
  • Cemeteries
    • Grace Foundation Graveyard Policy
    • Bethlehem Church Cemetery Records
    • Grace Episcopal Church Burial Records
    • Lane Cemetery
    • Robson Cemetery >
      • Robson Cemetery Grave Photos
    • Hoopers Point Cemetery
  • Notable Islanders
    • Early Islanders
    • Samuel M Travers
    • HON. LEVI D. TRAVERS
    • Dr. Washington A Smith
    • J. Hooper Bosley
    • Tall Family >
      • Family Burial Ground of Elijah Tall
    • THOMAS BROOME TRAVERS >
      • Thomas Broome Travers (genealogy)
    • Revolution
    • T. Reynolds Carpenter
  • Schools & Students
    • School used as museum
    • Schoolhouse MD Historical Trust Info
  • African American Schoolhouse
    • African American School - MD Historic Trust Info
  • Slaughter Creek & The Bridge
    • Old Store at bridge
    • Bridge to Meekins Neck
    • Ferry to Meekins Neck
  • Island Folklore
    • The Tea Set
    • The Story of Polly
    • Taylors Island During Prohibition
    • Clara Bow
    • The Tale of the Swan Decoy
  • Lists of Business Persons & Farmers
    • 1887
    • 1894-95 >
      • Wm. D. Travers
    • 1908-09
    • 1915-17
  • Taylors Island Ship Building
    • Travis Spicer & Sons Shipbuilders
    • Historic Ships of Taylors Island >
      • Moses Henry Geoghegan
  • Slaughter Creek Marina
    • Coast Guard Station Photo
  • James Island
    • James Island photos
    • James Island sketches
    • James Island Videos
    • Aerial Photos of James Island
    • James Island Articles
    • James Island School
    • Sika Deer of James Island
    • James Island Restoration
  • Remembrances from bygone days
    • History by Laura Robinson Navy -1977
    • Old mode of transportation
  • Grace Foundation History
    • Senator George L. Radcliffe
    • The Promise
    • 1st Meeting of Grace Foundation May 13, 1951
  • Membership Information
    • 2022 Membership Letter
    • 2020 Membership Letter
    • 2020 Membership Roster
    • Membership Application
    • 2019 Membership Letter
    • 2015 Membership Letter
  • Champion Trees of Taylors Island
    • Bicentennial Tree
    • Persimmon Tree
    • Post Oak
    • Trees harvested to be used as roads
  • Taylors Island Volunteer Fire Company
    • TIVFC articles
    • TIVFC Photos over the years
    • Tragic Fire
  • Transpeninsular Line
    • 1971 Article on Transpeninsular Line
GRACE FOUNDATION OF TAYLORS ISLAND, MD
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It is said that the creek got its name from a man named Slaughter who was a close associate of the hated 17th century pirate Rodger Makeele. Slaughter chose the creek as his own hideaway. The name Slaughter Creek appears on maps as early as the year 1670.

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In 1728 the people of Taylors Island petitioned the justices of Dorchester County for a ferry between the island and the mainland. They cited a population of 236 souls living on the island and their need to attend church as well as do business on the mainland. The justices granted one thousand pounds of tobacco to anyone who would establish the ferry. No records can be found of the ferry's first or earliest operators, but in 1786 Henry Travers held the position and later, his widow.*

The first bridge was built in 1854. The present bridge is the fourth at the site.  The above image is an ariel view of the Slaughter Creek Bridge looking north. This "new bridge" was built in 1999 and replaced a wooden span that was built in 1928 (scroll to the bottom of page to see photos of the dedication ceremony for the new bridge in 1999).

* source - "The Disappearing Islands of the Chesapeake" by William B. Cronin - Johns Hopkins University Press 2005.
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The above photo appears in the book Steamboats Out Of Baltimore by Robert Burgess and H. Graham Wood. The book is available for review in the Maryland Room of the Talbot County Library. 

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Image of the bridge spanning Slaughter Creek from the 1930s.  Mid span is the Harrington seafood receiving and packing facility that operated on the bridge as late as the 1940s.
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​Image of the bridge spanning Slaughter Creek from the 1930s.  Mid span is the Harrington seafood receiving and packing facility that operated on the bridge as late as the 1940s.
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From left: Earl creighton, sr., earl hughes, byron harrington, and james abbott on the packing house attached to the bridge.

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The bridge as it appeared at sunset February 5, 2019.

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Survey of Slaughter Creek dated 1880:
​
General survey or examination of Slaughter Creek Maryland was directed in the River and Harbor Act of 1870. The necessary field work was done by Assistant Johu L Seager and party in October 1879. The map has since been prepared in the office under his supervision. Slaughter Creek is a small branch of the Little Choptank River emptying into the latter on the south side at about 5 miles from its mouth.This stream is in Dorchester County Maryland. Its course and that of its continuation, Little Slaughter, are nearly parallel to the shore of the bay, from which they are separated by Taylor's Island. This is low, like all the country in that section. It is about 5&1/2 miles long and 3&1/2 wide. The island is for a great part under cultivation most of the products being shipped from Ferry Point which is the head of steamboat navigation on the creek. There is a bridge at this point across Slaughter Creek connecting Taylor's Island with the main. The bridge is of wood on piles and is 1,118 feet long. There is a draw in it with a clear width of 26 feet. A steamer makes 3 trips weekly during the spring summer and autumn between Baltimore Slaughter Creek and 4 or 5 landings on the Little Choptank. There is a ship yard just inside the mouth of the creek doing an apparently good business. A 3 masted schooner of about 500 tons was being built there in the summer of 1879. Seven vessels are owned on the creek with an aggregate tonnage of 400. About 50,000 bushels of grain are shipped annually. The settlement at Ferry Point consists of about one dozen families two stores and a post office. Some fruit and ship timber are shipped thence. Besides its mouth into the Little Choptank River, Slaughter Creek is connected with the bay by another opening farther south through what is called Punch's Island Creek. This creek forms the southern limit of Taylor's Island. The survey of Slaughter Creek was confined to the portion between the bridge at Ferry Point and the Little Choptank a distance of about 2&3/4 miles. This section of the creek is almost straight. The following description of it is taken from Mr Seager's notes: Three thousand feet below the bridge the creek is 1,600 feet wide, at 5,000 feet below 900 feet wide, at 8,000 feet below 1,300 feet wide. At the mouth between the points it is 1,500 feet wide.The of et channel at the mouth is 200 feet wide. deepest water in mid channel 10 feet the 8 feet curve extends 1,300 feet inside the mouth and 1,600 feet outside. with a width inside of not less than 150 feet and widening outside to 400 or 500 feet then closing leaving a bar outside with about 33 feet of jo it. Total length of bar from inside 8 feet curve to same outside about eel The 6 feet curve widens out inside the creek to about 400 feet and extends to the bridge narrowing gradually until at the bridge it is only 110 feet wide. There are several bad lumps in this 6 feet channel the water on them ranging from 4 to 5 feet. The shores of the creek are low and flat.The mean range of the tide is about 13 feet. The estimate submitted contemplates dredging a channel 100 feet wide at such points as may be necessary below the bridge to give a depth of 7 feet at mean lowwater. To do so will require the removal of 29,000 cubic yards of material at a cost of $7,250. Very respectfully your obedient servant WM P CRAIGHILL Major of Engineers Brig Gen HG WRIGHT Chief of Engineers USA.
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The above image is a photograph of a page from Dorchester County Fact Book by Calvin Mowbray (1981). This book is available for review in the Maryland Room of the Talbot County Library.

​The below photos were taken at the bridge dedication in 1999.

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Below are two photos of the wooden bridge in as it appeared in 1997
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