Charlie Hall: Thank God for this Country Boy – The ‘Whip’ of the Dorsey Machine

What many of them had in common was adherence to a political tradition in the Seventh District, often called “Dorsey-land” due to the tribe in local politics named for the late Judge Phillip H. Dorsey, and later led by his son, long-time St. Mary’s County States Attorney Walter B. Dorsey. Judge Dorsey had his allies and they were the Baileys, Bo, Eddie, Bernard and many more. Others who were influential in the Dorsey Machine, as the liberals who had their own machine liked to call it, were “lieutenants” of the political organization – one of whom was Charlie Hall.

To simply report that Charlie Hall just kicked the bucket is to do the man a great injustice, without describing the important role he played in the politics and life of one county of three-thousand in America.

Charlie rose from being a lieutenant to being a standard-bearer in that in 1974 he mounted a credible campaign for County Commissioner and lost the Democratic Primary to John Knight Parlett, the scion of a gas empire on the east coast.

Summertime on the Chesapeake: St. Michael’s, Md.

ST. MICHAEL’S, MD. — The home of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, this old town that bills itself as the town that fooled the British, is now the center of one of the finest collections of Chesapeake Bay boats of all types. The museum is staffed by friendly and knowledgeable folks, mostly volunteers, who bring their own collective experience and wisdom to entertain and educate.

Cap’n Larry Jarboe: The Captain and the Kid

Though I was only four or five years old, I still remember my first charter boat fishing trip on the Chesapeake Bay.

When my Dad told me I was going fishing, I got my toy plastic reel and steel rod that had a rubber hook for snatching up open mouthed plastic goldfish in a dexterity game.

I cut off the rubber hook with safety scissors and tied on a Christmas ornament hook. I was ready to catch a fish.

Capt. Bill Dixon from Town Creek must have been amused as I carried my rig onto his boat with my Dad, his business partner Howard Carpenter, and members of our families.

Point Lookout Hotel was once a lovely old lady sitting on the beach at the Chesapeake Bay

I first visited the hotel sometime around 1937-38, and thought She was grand with Her wide double staircase leading to the upstairs from the great oaken-curved desk. The picture of Point Lookout Hotel that was carried in the November issue of The Chesapeake brought back poignant memories that I have really tried to put out of my mind. The last time I visited the Hotel, She reminded me of a skull looking with sightless eyes across the waters of the Bay. I say ‘She,’ because to me She was once a lovely old lady sitting there beside the beach smiling at the sea gulls and fishermen as they passed in their boats.

Waterman’s condos with crabs meets tough time from bureaucrats

Maryland’s shoreline is 7,700 miles including coastal inlets, according to updated measurements by the Maryland Geological Survey. The bay and ocean coasts have some of the most highly prized real estate in the state, and some of the most threatened. While the state depends on tax revenue and shore tourism dollars, regulators struggle to find a balance that also protects the resources of the Chesapeake from overdevelopment
Established in 1984, Maryland’s Critical Area Commission is charged with balancing the drive for development with the need to protect the natural resources of the bay from the strain of pollution and stress on wildlife.

Oyster sanctuaries working; oyster populations largest since 1985

Governor Martin O’Malley today announced good news regarding the State’s ongoing work to restore the Chesapeake Bay’s native oyster population. Results of Maryland’s 2013 Fall Oyster Survey indicate populations are continuing to increase: The oyster population has more than doubled since 2010, reaching its highest point since this type of monitoring began in 1985.

The future for Waldorf Mall? Creepy photos of abandoned shopping malls highlight crumbling communities of the Rust Belt

A photographer from Cleveland, who goes by the nom de plume Seph Lawless, spent the early months of 2014 sneaking into deserted shopping centers for his latest project. He focused on malls to tap into a fundamental piece of the American experience in the late 20th century.

Titanic 1912: the original news stories of the disaster

Just three months and a single day were all that separated the tragedy of the magnificent liner RMS Titanic in 1912 and that of a modern ship, the Costa Concordia, one hundred years later.
In both cases, the “press” as it used to be called, and the “media” as it is now commonly referred to describe the various electronic and print sources of news coverage; played an important role in the tragedies.