Meet the locals of Maryland’s last inhabited island
To visit Smith Island, Maryland, you’ll need to leave your car on the mainland.
By Somerset County, Maryland
April 1, 2025
Located 12 miles offshore on the Chesapeake Bay, Smith Island is Maryland’s only inhabited offshore island, renowned for its natural marsh landscapes and charming island communities.
“If you’re coming to Smith Island, you’re going to experience quiet, beautiful sunsets and sunrises, marsh scenes, water scenes and wildlife,” said Eddie Somers, a Smith Island resident and president of Smith Island United.
Smith Island is a collection of three distinct communities – Tylerton, Rhodes Point and Ewell – where generations of islanders have forged a strong connection to the natural waterways and wetlands that surround them. Somers suggests booking a boat tour with some of the island’s local watermen to experience this culture first-hand.
“Watermen are now taking people out on their boats to go crabbing or oystering,” he said. “They’re also doing sunset tours. That’ll give you a good idea of the true culture of Smith Island.”
Many of the businesses on Smith Island are family-owned and operated – like Betty Tyler’s Smith Island Cruises, which offers boats from Crisfield and Point Lookout, Maryland.
“Smith Island Cruises has been a family business for 45 years,” she said. “A lot of families here are a part of tourism, offering cottages to stay in, golf cart rentals and bike rentals.”
To fully understand Smith Island’s history, visitors should make the Smith Island Cultural Center their first stop, where they’ll find information about the typical life of Island watermen and their families, as well as exhibits on crabbing and traditional watercraft.
Plan your visit to Smith Island and experience the ways of the watermen.
