Ninety-one years ago this week, a powerful storm plunged much of Ocean City into chaos and left deadly consequences elsewhere in the mid-Atlantic, but it made its way between West Neptune Bay and the Atlantic Ocean An inlet was formed, bringing a glimmer of hope to this fishing and resort town.
Before entering the sea, fishermen use horses and ropes to drag the boat into the sea
Courtesy of Ocean City Lifesaving Museum
This 1895 rendering for the Baltimore, Chesapeake & Atlantic Railroad simulates a bird's-eye view of Ocean City from the southeast. The nearest east-west road is S. 2nd Street, which today is at the entrance and leads to the entrance parking lot. The railroad bridge in the upper left corner was destroyed in the same storm that formed the entrance in 1933. Eight years before the storm, a fire destroyed parts of downtown and the boardwalk. (Courtesy of Ocean City Lifesaving Museum)
The image above simulates an aerial view of Ocean City in the late 19th century, when railroads connected it to the mainland. The entrance will now be through the lower left corner of the frame. Between the time shown in the image and the 1933 storm, another naturally formed inlet housed small fishing boats for much of the 1920s before nature refilled it, a process that was often repeated. The area had long lobbied the state and federal governments for a permanent inlet that would serve as a safe fishing port and hub for crabs, oysters and clams, and by the time of the 1933 storm, the state government had the funds ready. With no access, fishermen used horses, ropes and pulleys to drag their boats across the beach to the open sea, riding the waves back to shore as they returned with their catch.
Even amid destruction, locals celebrate 'Scourge Bay'
The storm of August 22-23, 1933, known as the Chesapeake-Potomac Hurricane, was one of the most destructive storms to strike the Mid-Atlantic region. Ocean City experienced four days of heavy rain and rough surf before the storm hit full force. Buildings, vehicles and a railroad bridge were washed away, and the boardwalk was torn apart. Needing to get somewhere, flooding from Sinepcente Bay and nearby rivers broke through the low barrier island at the southern end of town, creating “Acts of God Bay.” Even in the immediate aftermath of the storm, locals recognized and celebrated their good fortune, no matter how qualified they were, and at their urging, the federal government quickly funded and completed dredging and docking to protect and expand the bay.
White Tuna's open, wide beaches are part of the inlet's heritage
As evidenced by the recently completed 51st Annual White Marlin Open, the bay has transformed the region's commercial and recreational fishing economies. Meanwhile, increased salinity in West Neptune Bay makes oysters and clams more palatable, while sand trapped by piers makes the beach at the inlet particularly wide.
Do you have a story idea or question that might arise about Baltimore or Maryland history? Email researcher Paul McCardell at pmccardell@baltsun.com.
