The Unlucky Rebel : William Claiborne and the Evolution of the Kent Island Dispute

This thesis attempts to present a more complete view of the often-overlooked conflict over Kent Island between the merchant and early Virginian politician William Claiborne and the Lords Baltimore by presenting it in the evolving cultural context of the Atlantic world

Competition and Conflict: Maryland\u27s First Ten Years

England\u27s first settlers arrived in Virginia hoping to achieve the same success Spaniards had in the West Indies. Yet, North America held little wealth in the forms of gold or silver and the hopes of finding a Northwest Passage proved fruitless as well. For over ten years British holdings in the New World showed little sign of producing profits. It was not until 1614, and the introduction of tobacco, that Virginians finally discovered a commodity that could be sold back in Europe. Tobacco cultivation, however, was not the only activity that offered the possibility of wealth. Between the years of 1629 and 1635 there existed an opportunity for the creation of trade networks between the white man and Indian. Unfortunately, almost as quickly as these trade networks emerged, competition between the natives and Europeans led to the exhaustion of the beaver population, and ultimately caused the colonies of the Chesapeake to erupt into warfare

Part One: Historical Perspective (of the Chesapeake Bay)

This study analyzes the legal problems in the development and management of Chesapeake Bay resources. There are threshold problems of definition - What is Chesapeake Bay? What are its resources? What role does law play in their development and management? The Historical Perspective traces the political controversies that have involved the Bay since the colonies of Maryland and Virginia were first founded. In a rough sense, it defines the traditional resources of the Bay by isolating occasions when individuals, businesses and governmental bodies found themselves at cross-purposes as to how the Bay was to be used and shared