Deal Island, Maryland

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Deal Island is a census-designated place (CDP) in Somerset County, Maryland, United States. The population was 578 at the 2000 census.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 Trivia
4 External links

[edit] Geography

Deal Island is located at 38°9′16″N, 75°56′44″W (38.154551, -75.945659)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 13.9 km² (5.4 mi²). 8.4 km² (3.2 mi²) of it is land and 5.5 km² (2.1 mi²) of it (39.66%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 578 people, 240 households, and 165 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 68.7/km² (178.0/mi²). There were 352 housing units at an average density of 41.8/km² (108.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 90.31% White, 7.96% African American, 0.87% Native American, 0.17% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.21% of the population.

There were 240 households out of which 20.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.3% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 21.3% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 20.6% from 25 to 44, 33.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.8 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $33,490, and the median income for a family was $38,571. Males had a median income of $30,592 versus $24,219 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $13,936. About 4.1% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Trivia

Deal Island was historically known as Devil's Island. British convicts were sent there to perform labor. The marshy region's notorious mosquito and biting fly problems along with its hot humid summers probably contributed to this former name. Nearby Dames Quarters also had an unappealing name: Quarters of the Damned. At least one source also attributes these nicknames to the area's use by pirates.

Since 1960, Deal Island has hosted an annual Labor Day weekend Skipjack Race. The race features skipjacks which are sloop-rigged swing keel wooden sailing vessels with triangular sails designed for dregging oysters. These vessels were operated extensively between the 1880's to the 1960's. Deal Island was once the home port for a large fleet of skipjacks and today has some the the few remaining skipjacks operating commercially for oystering on the Chesapeake Bay.