Early and Colonial 's trading post on Kent Island, 1635 Before
European colonization, Kent Island was inhabited by Native Americans for nearly 12,000 years. The island was inhabited by the
Matapeake people, members of the
Algonquian nation whom the
Matapeake area of Kent Island is named. Other tribes that inhabited the area and often visited the island included the
Ozinie tribe. The Matapeake people referred to the island as
Monoponson in their language. During the 16th and 17th centuries, early explorers of the Chesapeake Bay, including
Captain John Smith (who had named the area "Winstons Iles"), were the first
Europeans to see Kent Island; however, it wasn't until August 1631 that the island became an English settlement. At that time,
William Claiborne, a resident of Jamestown, Virginia, founded a settlement near the southern end of the island for the purpose of trading with
Native Americans and named the land "the Isle of Kent" after his birthplace of
Kent,
England. The settlement burned down in the winter of 1631–32 but was quickly rebuilt, and in 1634 the settlement included a gristmill, courthouse, and trading station. Following the formation of the
province of Maryland, Claiborne continued to recognize the island as part of his home colony of
Virginia, while
Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore recognized it as part of Maryland. Claiborne was forced from and returned to the island twice before leaving permanently in 1658, thus effectively ending the disputes. Virginia's official claims to the island, however, continued until 1776. During the
War of 1812 the island was occupied by British forces from the
102d Regiment of Foot and the
Royal Marines.The island was used as a base for
naval forces under the command of Rear Admiral
George Cockburn. Its position allowed the British to simultaneously threaten
Baltimore and
Annapolis.
Industrial Revolution Until the early 19th century, Kent Island was used almost entirely for farming of
tobacco and corn, however that ended due to the depletion of nutrient-rich soil as a result of the lack of
crop rotation and
poor farming practices. The island's economy went into decline while the soil recovered, except for the port town of
Broad Creek. This began to change around the time of the
Industrial Revolution. In 1850, the town of
Stevensville, was founded after the sale of farms owned by James and Charles Stevens and prospered as a major hub for steamboat travel across the Chesapeake Bay. Stevensville was also the home of a railroad station known as the Stevensville Train Depot that was located near the western end of a
railroad that carried
ferry passengers to other parts of the Eastern Shore. Also during this time, small resorts on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay and the
Atlantic Ocean were established in the area. Such a resort existed at Love Point, to the north of Stevensville. Farming returned to the economy in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries with farmers growing crops including corn, wheat, berries, and melons. Many of the island's inhabitants worked as watermen in the expanding seafood industry capitalizing on the Chesapeake's supply of
Maryland Blue Crab, rockfish, and oysters. ==Notable residents==