“Chincoteague oysters are shipped almost exclusively to New York and Philadelphia, and during good seasons command high prices.
“During the season of 1879-'80, Chincoteague oysters were in active demand at high prices, the average for the winter being not less than 60 cents per bushel, and in the latter part of May 90 cents was readily obtained. A feature of the Chincoteague trade is, that all oysters are sold by the thousand, and not by the bushel, as in other parts of Maryland and Virginia. This custom has been adopted in conformity to the usages of northern markets.
“Greenback is a town situated near Franklin, on the Chincoteague bay, the southern terminus of the Old Dominion Steamship Company's railroads on the peninsula. Nearly every man living in Franklin, and every one in Greenback, depends on the oyster-business for his support. Both of these villages have grown up since the war, Greenback being the older place. It was so named by an old oysterman, one of three or four who first planted in the bay in front of the place, because the first season's shipment of oysters returned to the oystermen such a rich reward in greenbacks. This was in 1865, and since then the quality of the oysters produced in this part of Chincoteague bay has been so generally good, that they have made a favorable impression on European shippers.”
From Ingersoll, Ernest. 1881. The Oyster-industry. History and present condition of the fishery industries. Tenth Census of the United States. Department of the Interior. 251 p.
“Chincoteague, a beautiful Island by the sea, is part of the Eastern Shore of Virginia, that peninsula which bounds the Chesapeake Bay. The Island, which is nine miles long by perhaps a mile and a half wide, is sheltered not only by the long mainland to the west, but to the east by Assateague, an island running up through Maryland, and is connected with the mainland by a five mile causeway and bridges. This little island town of about four thousand inhabitants has indeed been given the right name meaning ‘The Beautiful Land Across the Water.’
“The Island received its name from the tribe of Indians known as the Gingo-Teague Tribe.
“When the white man came, he came to possess, and so the small Indian tribes were driven away to the Mainland and their island home was theirs no more. Thus Chincoteague was first settled in 1672.
“The Chincoteague Pony, now a registered breed, descends from the 'wild' horses on Assateague Island, a 37 mile long barrier island off the coast of Maryland and Virginia. The 'wild' horses on Assateague are actually feral animals, meaning that they are descendants of domestic animals that have reverted to a wild state.
“[T]he internationally famous "Pony Penning" event… began in some form during the 17th century when unclaimed horses were captured and marked by colonists in the presence of neighbors on a day of fellowship and festivity. The modem Pony Penning began in 1924 as an effort to raise money for the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company and is still held on the last Wednesday and Thursday of July. The Virginia herd, rounded up by the Chincoteague "saltwater cowboys", swims across the channel (at slack tide) to Chincoteague on Wednesday in front of thousands of cheering spectators. The swim takes about 5-10 minutes. Most of the foals are auctioned off on Thursday and the remaining horses swim back to Assateague on Friday.”
Fom Lillian Mears Rew's book, Assateague & Chincoteague: As I Remember Them.
