File:01 - Eelpot Flats early name.jpg

Summary

The area now known as Brunswick was originally home to the Susquehanna Indians. In 1728 the first settlement was built, and the region became known as Eel Town, because the natives would fish for eel in the Potomac River. A grant to the land was then given to John Hawkins by George II of Great Britain on August 10, 1753. The grant had the name "Hawkins Merry-Peep-o-Day". The land was sold and Leonard Smith platted it in 1787 with the name of “Berlin,” as many Germans settled in the area. The name “Berlin” however, could not be used for mail as there was already a Berlin on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, so the post office changed the name to "Barry." The town continued to grow and was incorporated April 18, 1890 with the name “Brunswick.”

(Photo & the below story courtesy of Claude Jones comments and queries: claudejones@eelpotflats.com

Eelpot Flats was an early name for settlements at the Potomac River crossing where Brunswick, MD is located today. The flats along the river on the Maryland side, which form the basis for the tree line on the far side of the river in this picture, along with a honeycombed structure of low islands and multiple water channels between them, provided an ideal haven for eels. Indians in the area used to set out basket traps, later called eelpots by European settlers, to catch them.

(Photo & story courtesy of Claude Jones comments and queries: claudejones@eelpotflats.com)