Royal Oak
Talbot County, Maryland
In 1664 what is now known as the village of Royal Oak located in Talbot County was called "Rocky Nook" and "Oak Creek" was "Harbour Rouse Creek". I will attempt to tell how the village of Royal Oak evolved over the years.
At the beginning there was the river From Tilghman's Point where it meets Eastern Bay, St. Michaels River and it flowed in a southeastwardly direction inland until, at a distance of three or four miles, it changed course abruptly northward, taking on the shape of the letter "V".
On the base of this "V" a tributary shaped somewhat like a high-heeled boot penetrated the south shore of the river and entered into the forest for a distance of less than a mile. At the "heel" of the boot is the present site of the Village of Royal Oak.
It is only a short distance - at this point - between the waters of this tributary of St. Michaels (Miles) river and those of Broad, or Second Creek, as it was known in the seventeenth century. At the easternmost end, or the "toe" of the boot, the waters of the tributary are in close proximity to those of Plaindealing Creek, a condition that caused a proposal some fifty or so years ago for a canal to be dug between the two. Property owners whose lands would have been ravaged by this construction objected with such vengeance that the plan was scrapped.
Prior to the old wooden swing-bridge being built over Oak Creek by Royal Oak Station at what is now the village of Newcomb the old oyster shell covered road (it was paved in the 1930's) through Royal Oak was the only road from the Bay Hundred area to Easton. This new road was know as Maryland Route 17 and ran from Claiborne to U.S. Route 213 in Easton. while the MD 33 designation was used for present-day Maryland Route 17 in Frederick County. By 1940, MD 17 and MD 33 switched designations and Maryland Route 33 was routed on the Romancoke-Claiborne Ferry to Kent Island, where it ended at Maryland Route 404 in Matapeake. After that ferry service was discontinued at the end of 1952, MD 33 was rerouted to Tilghman Island, replacing what was Maryland Route 451 between McDaniel and Tilghman Island. Meanwhile, MD 451 was moved to the former MD 33 between McDaniel and Claiborne, where it remained until 1999, while Maryland Route 8 was designated along the former MD 33 on Kent Island.
This new road that bi-passed Royal Oak cut off over 2 miles on the trip from the Bay Hundred Area to Easton. It might be noted that half-way between Easton and St. Michaels there was a tree known as the "Half-Way Tree". This tree is a magnificent Loblolly pine located on the straight-away through the forest on the east side of Royal Oak Rd and can be recognized today because it resembles an upside down cloths pin. It is said that this tree dated back to the 19th century or before. Additionally this straight-away was a favorite spot for horse racing, since it was exactly 12 furlongs (1 1/2 miles) through the woods with the "Half-Way Tree" marking a distance of 4 furlongs headed toward Easton.
This web Site is a work in progress so please check back often for the latest updates.
Note: This Web Site is based on excerpts from "The Royal Oak," Volume 3 of Twig and Turf, Author: R. Bernice Leonard, A complete history of the village of Royal Oak. Includes the history, genealogy and lore of the families that inhabited Royal Oak. This source book along and many others about the area are available from the "Branches of the Bay Bookshop" http://branchesofthebay.com/.