The Oxford-Bellevue Ferry

Two weeks after the passage of the Trade Act in 1683, which established Oxford as a port town, the Talbot County Court, equivalent of the later County Commissioners or today’s County Council, on November 20, 1683, authorized the establishment of a ferry across the Tred Avon and “pitcht upon” one Robert Royston, who lived on the opposite side of the creek from the town, to operate it. Royston was to be paid a subsidy of 2,500 pounds of tobacco a year.

This ferry was by no means the first in Talbot County. Ferries on the Wye River (1668), the “wading place” at Kent Narrows (1671), and the Miles (1677) all had preceded it. But it was the first designed to serve ships riding at anchor as well as passengers across the river.

Of them all, the Oxford ferry is the only one in Talbot County still operating. Although it was out of business for some sixty years following the American Revolution, it is now believed to be the nation’s oldest privately-operated ferry service.

As Oxford’s fame as a summer resort spread, Oswald Tilghman laid out a complete town with streets and a spacious town square, on Ferry Neck, where the Tred Avon ferry terminated and a country road meandered north. He named it Belleview for his wife.

None of this took root except the name. No city ever arose at Bellevue. But one possibly related result was improvement in the ferry service.

In 1886 the ferry’s time-honored method of propulsion by means of sculls and sails was replaced with a small steam tug, the William H. Fisher, which towed wooden scows across the river. This was an enormous improvement; the old method, in which the scow had been propelled chiefly by a fourteen-foot sweep oar operated at the stern, was rugged work requiring a strength and skill few men possessed.

Use of the tug cut down on the number of scow crossings needed. A signal system was developed, with a large square of sheet wood painted white on one side, black on the other. When a passenger wanted to cross, he hoisted the signal with the black side out if he was on foot, the white side out if he was on horseback or had a wagon or (later) automobile. For foot passengers, the ferryman just brought the tugboat.

The Fisher lasted until about 1912, when it was replaced by the gasoline-powered Vivian. In 1932, Captain Buck Richardson built a gasoline-powered self-propelled ferry. This had the capacity of three automobiles and could make the crossing in six minutes. Later named the Tred Avon, it was purchased in 1938 by Captain Bill Benson, who converted it to diesel power, and operated it until he retired in 1974.

The Ferry operates 7 days a week from April to Mid-November (Sat-Sun only in November). Trips begin at 9:00AM with continuous crossings every 15-20 Minutes. For contact information and rates, please visit the Ferry’s website. 

Source: Preston, Dickson J. Oxford: The First Three Centuries. (Easton, MD: The Historical Society of Talbot County, 1984), 13-15, 178-80.