St. Clement's Island State Park

St. Clement's Island State Park
Maryland State Park
Commemorative cross and rebuilt Blackistone Lighthouse
Country	United States
State	Maryland
County	St. Mary's
Elevation	10 ft (3 m) [1]
Coordinates	38°12′30″N 76°44′40″W / 38.20833°N 76.74444°W / 38.20833; -76.74444Coordinates: 38°12′30″N 76°44′40″W / 38.20833°N 76.74444°W / 38.20833; -76.74444 [1]
Area	62 acres (25 ha) [2]
Established	1962 [3]
Management	Maryland Department of Natural Resources
style=""color: #cde5b2"" | IUCN category	V - Protected Landscape/Seascape
Location in Maryland
Website: St. Clement's Island State Park
St. Clement's Island Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Nearest city	Coltons Point, Maryland
Governing body	State
NRHP Reference #	72001484[4]
Added to NRHP	April 10, 1972

St. Clement's Island State Park is a Maryland state park that preserves St. Clement's Island, an uninhabited island in the Potomac River that lies one-half mile southeast of Colton's Point, St. Mary's County, Maryland, in the United States. The St. Clement's Island Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 10, 1972.^[4]

History

The park preserves the site of the March 25, 1634, landing of Maryland's first colonists, who had sailed from Cowes on the Isle of Wight in England four months earlier.^[3][5] The date is commemorated annually as Maryland Day.^[6] The island was a convenient, temporary base of operations for the 150 settlers as they negotiated with the Yaocomico Native Americans for land for a permanent settlement. They named the island in honor of Pope Saint Clement I, patron of mariners. It was the site of the first Roman Catholic Mass celebrated in the British-American colonies, said by Jesuit Father Andrew White. It is widely believed that the Mass took place on the day of the landing.^[7]

St. Clement's Island formed part of St. Clement's Manor, which was granted by the Second Lord Baltimore to Dr. Thomas Gerard in 1639.^[8] Gerard subsequently became a major landholder and political figure in Maryland and Virginia. After the island became the property of Gerard's daughter Elizabeth, who was married to Nehemiah Blackistone, it became known as Blackistone Island. The Blackistone family took ownership in 1669, and the island remained in that family for 162 years. The name reverted to St. Clement's Island in 1962 when the property was leased to the State of Maryland.^[3]

In 1934, to celebrate Maryland’s 300th birthday, Governor Albert Ritchie dedicated a 40-foot stone cross on the island, recognizing the site as the location where religious toleration in America had its foundation.^[3]

For many years, the island was the site of the Blakistone Island Light.^[9] Through the efforts of the St. Clement's Hundred, a local community organization created for the preservation of St. Clement's Island, a replica of the Blackistone Lighthouse was constructed and completed in June 2008.^[3]

Activities and amenities

The island is only accessible by boat. A ferry leaves from the St. Clement's Island-Potomac River Museum near Colton's Point from June through September. Island activities include hiking, picnicking, fishing and hunting.^[10] The park is administered by Point Lookout State Park.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to St. Clement's Island State Park.

External links

• St. Clement's Island State Park Maryland Department of Natural Resources

U.S. National Register of Historic Places in Maryland Topics Contributing property Keeper of the Register Historic district History of the National Register of Historic Places National Park Service Property types Lists by county Allegany Anne Arundel Baltimore County Calvert Caroline Carroll Cecil Charles Dorchester Frederick Garrett Harford Howard Kent Montgomery Prince George's Queen Anne's Somerset St. Mary's Talbot Washington Wicomico Worcester Lists by city Baltimore: (Central North and Northwest West and Southwest East and Northeast South and Southeast) Other lists Bridges National Historic Landmarks Category:National Register of Historic Places in Maryland Portal:National Register of Historic Places