Gannet at West Ocean City

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=50 BGCOLOR="#333366" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>GANNET</B><B> AT WEST OCEAN CITY-1986</B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=165 BGCOLOR="#993300" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="132" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 35 ><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id99.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Great Blue Heron"><U><B><IMG SRC="007151d0.gif" border=0 width="21" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id101.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Creston E. at Crisfield"><U><B><IMG SRC="008151d0.gif" border=0 width="21" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="20"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="35" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="20" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id136.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Water Color Prints Matted for 14 x 18 or"><U><B><IMG SRC="00d0d1d0.gif" border=0 width="13" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="27"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <div> <A HREF="id136.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Water Color Prints Matted for 14 x 18 or"><U><B>Return to water color and oil page</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=430 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div>   <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" >  </FONT>           </div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>In 1933 a devastating hurricane swept the mid-Atlantic coast.  It struck Ocean City with tremendous force leaving in it’s wake a large cut through what had previously been a continous strip of land joining what is now Assateague Island National Seashore.  Given the extent of the damage and the potential for similar storms in the future reconnecting the land masses was dismissed as an option.  As an alternative, the inlet was dredged to provide greater access to the mainland and bayside areas.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Prior to that time Ocean City already had an established commerical fishing industry using small boats for offshore pound net fishing.  With the new inlet fishermen now had access to sheltered harbors and commercial fishing gained new momentum.  The center of this activity was just inside the inlet across from the south tip of Ocean City in what is now West Ocean City.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Today a wide range of Commercial fishing enterprises dominate this area and fishing boats of all types and sizes can be seen docked here and passing through the Inlet to and from the offshore fishing grounds.  About 40 boats of various size and rig work out of this harbor, far less than what it once was.</B></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>