Revolutionary Shore Driving Tour: Hog Island and the British Occupation

About

This spot highlights the actual end of the Revolutionary War.

East of here is one of the Barrier Islands called Hog Island.

Over time, settlers moved to Hog Island creating the town of Broadwater. After a series of storms ravaged the island, eighteen of the houses on Hog Island were moved to Willis Wharf. Others were moved to Oyster, Exmore, and other locations on the Shore.

Early in the Revolutionary War, the British established an operating base on Hog Island. Small ships called tenders and barges raided the Eastern Shore to get food and livestock which were used to replenish the supplies of British warships in the area. The Hog Island base was in command of Captain John Kidd. Though Cornwallis surrendered in 1781, the war on Shore waters continued. The tables
finally turned on February 12, 1783, when the Virginia militia attacked the British forces on Hog Island.
The Treaty of Paris was signed by U.S. and British Representatives six months later on September 3, 1783, officially ending the War of the American Revolution.

Information from the Revolutionary Shore Driving Tour