Bigler's Mill, Virginia
After the war, a new community grew up along the river based on oyster planting and harvesting. In this practice, seed oysters were gathered from rocky river bottoms, mostly in the James River, and planted in the muddier York River. The right to plant and harvest sections of the riverbed was leased from the state, and leaseholds were transferable, a system that provided some measure of protection from overfishing, and prosperity for the lease owners.
During World War II, the U.S. Navy took over a large area in the north-western portion of York County, which was developed as Camp Peary. All residents of the entire towns of Bigler's Mill and nearby Magruder were removed, and many of the areas were redeveloped.
Camp Peary later became well known as "The Farm," a training facility for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Access to the base is restricted. The 100-acre (400,000 m) Biglers Millpond occupies the site adjacent to the York River.
See also
References
- ^ US House of Representatives 1892. Reports of Committees v. 5, Report #1539, Claim of James Bigler.
- ^ Schulte, D.M., 2017, History of the Virginia oyster fishery, Chesapeake Bay, USA: Frontiers in Marine Science v. 4. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2017.00127
37°20′11″N 76°38′44″W / 37.33639°N 76.64556°W