Island on the Move - Ocean City, MD - Signs of History on Waymarking.com

The plaque says, "Assateaque Island is in constant motion. Influenced by wind, waves, tides, and currents, sand movement continually reshapes the island and its shores. These forces combined with a gradually rising sea level, cause Assateaque to move a few feet westward every year. Thousands of years of migration have force the island to continually "roll over" itself.

North End Migration
Human development has altered the natural dynamics of Assateque's north end. In 1933, a hurricane separated Assateaguq Island from Ocean City. Stone jetties were built to keep the inlet from closing with sand. The north jetty trapped sand that would have come to Assateaque, creating a beach wide enough for a new parking lot.

Assateaque's sand-starved north end then migrated west at an usually fast rate; 35 feet per year from 1935 until recently (normal rate is 3 feet per year). Movement has slowed, but action is still needed to prevent the north end from merging with the mainland much sooner than it would under natural conditions.

How Island "Roll Over"

Many barrier islands retreat from the rising sea level through a natural process called overwash. During the most severe storms, powerful waves break over (overwash) and dissolve primary dunes. Successive waves flood the island, spreading sand over wide areas. Sand often washes directly into the bay.

Dune, thicket, and marsh areas may be temporarily buried. After several overwashes, island movement is often visible; the marsh has grown into the bay on new sand deposits, and other island communities have shifted slightly west of their former locations."

Group that erected the marker: Unknown Address of where the marker is located. Approximate if necessary: Ocean City, MD, USA URL of a web site with more information about the history mentioned on the sign: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Take a picture of the marker, preferably including yourself or your GPSr in the photo. A very detailed description of your visit may be substituted for a photo. In any case please provide a description of your visit. A description of only "Visited" or "Saw it while on vacation" by anyone other than the person creating the waymark may be deleted by the waymark owner or the category officers.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   12/26/2022 Searcher28 visited it