Advertisement

The Last House On Holland Island, U.S.A

Just 360 people were living in Holland Island in 1910. And believe it or not, it was considered to be the most populated island in the Chesapeake Bay at that time. After all, it had a lot of luxurious homes, a church, a school, and many shops. But there was one major problem for the locals – the problem of erosion. And as we know that erosion causes significant damage over time, the residents were worried and so they even had stones shipped in to slow down erosion, but nothing worked. The residents had no other option but to leave their homes. So, they tore down their homes and moved to another place. The 1918 tropical storm did further damage to remaining infrastructures.

heraldweekly.com

And so, the last resident left the island in 1922. It is not that others didn't try to save the island. In 1995, Stephen White (a Methodist minister) bought the land for $70,000 in an effort to preserve its legacy. He created the Holland Island Preservation Foundation, but all his efforts failed as the island shrank by 20 acres in the next 15 years. This house in the picture was built in 1888 and it fought erosion for over a century. It was the last house on the island that finally lost the battle to shoreline erosion.