Editing Oxford, Maryland (section)

==History==
Oxford is one of the oldest towns in [[Maryland]]. While Oxford officially marks the year 1683 as its founding because in that year it was first named by the Maryland General Assembly as a seaport, the town began between 1666 and 1668 when {{convert|30|acre|m2}} were laid out as a town called Oxford by William Stephens Jr.. By 1669 one of the first houses was built for Innkeeper Francis Armstrong (see Talbot County Land Records, A 1, f. 10/11).<ref>See: Owsald Tilghman, ''History of Talbot County'', 2 vols., (Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins Co., 1915). Tilghman notes the will of William Parrat [Parrott] (p. 334). Parrat leaves "my share of house and Land at Oxford" to his son. The will is dated March 14, 1668. Parrat identifies himself in his will as "William Parrat of Tredhaven In Choptank River In Talbot County." The original Parrat will is to be found at the Maryland State Archives, TALBOT COUNTY REGISTER OF WILLS (Wills, Original) Will of William Parrat, 1669, box 18, folder 41, MSA C1926-22. ecp March 13, 2008</ref>

Oxford first appears on a map completed in 1670 and published in 1671.<ref>[[Edward C. Papenfuse]] and Joseph M. Coale, ''The Maryland State Archives Atlas of Historical Maps of Maryland, 1608-1908'', (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2003), pp. 16–21.</ref> In 1694, Oxford and a new town called [[Anne Arundel]] (now [[Annapolis, Maryland|Annapolis]]) were selected as the only ports of entry for the entire Maryland province. Until the [[American Revolution]], Oxford enjoyed prominence as an international shipping center surrounded by wealthy [[tobacco]] plantations.

[[File:Oxford Maryland Arriving by Ferry.jpg|left|thumb|Arriving at Oxford by ferry crossing the [[Tred Avon River]].]]

Early inhabitants included Robert Morris Sr., agent for a [[Liverpool, England|Liverpool]] shipping firm who greatly influenced the town's growth; his son, [[Robert Morris (merchant)|Robert Morris]] Jr., known as "the financier of the Revolution;" Jeremiah Banning, sea captain, war hero, and statesman; The Reverend Thomas Bacon, Anglican clergyman who wrote the first compilation of the laws of Maryland; [[Matthew Tilghman]], known as the "patriarch of Maryland" and "father of statehood"; and Colonel [[Tench Tilghman]], aide-de-camp to [[George Washington]] and the man who carried the message of [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|General Cornwallis]]'s surrender to the [[Continental Congress]] in [[Philadelphia]].

Tench Tilghman's grave can be found at the Oxford cemetery.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://teaattrianon.blogspot.com/2011/02/tench-tilghman-of-maryland.html|title=Tench Tilghman of Maryland|first=Elena Maria|last=Vidal|date=February 28, 2011|access-date=October 26, 2016}}</ref> It is overshadowed by the Tench Tilghman Monument, a stone spire approximately 10 feet tall.  The monument is the tallest monument found at the Oxford cemetery.  The cemetery itself was used in the opening sequence of the 1988 feature film, [[Clara's Heart]], starring Whoopi Goldberg and Neil Patrick Harris.

The [[American Revolution]] marked the end of Oxford's prosperity. Maritime trade declined, and tobacco was replaced by wheat as a cash crop.

After the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], Oxford was revived by the  completion of the railroad in 1871 and by improved methods of [[canning]] and packing which opened national markets for [[oysters]] from the [[Chesapeake Bay]]. This did not last. In the early part of the 20th century, the oyster beds played out, the packing houses closed, other businesses went bankrupt, and the railway and steamships eventually disappeared. Oxford became a sleepy little town inhabited mainly by watermen who still worked the waters of the [[Tred Avon River]].

Oxford is host to the oldest privately operated ferry service still in continuous use in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oxfordferry.com|title=Oxford-Bellevue Ferry Home|access-date=October 26, 2016}}</ref>  The original ferry service, known today as the [[Oxford–Bellevue Ferry]], was established in 1683 and continues today.  The ferry links Oxford with Bellevue, Maryland, crossing the 3/4 mile width of the Tred Avon River during a 7-10 minute trip (20 minute round trip).

Oxford today is still a waterman's town, but is enjoying a new resurgence based on tourism and leisure activities. The film [[Failure to Launch]] was filmed in part here.

The town is served by the Oxford Volunteer Fire Company, composed of two engines, a truck, tanker, command unit, brush unit, two BLS units, and a boat. They often respond to all of Talbot County as part of the Mutual Aid system. On average, they respond to over 100 calls per year.

[[Barnaby House]], [[Billie P. Hall (log canoe)|''Billie P. Hall'']], [[Jena (Oxford, Maryland)|Jena]], [[Otwell (Oxford, Maryland)|Otwell]], [[Oxford Historic District (Oxford, Maryland)|Oxford Historic District]], and [[S. C. Dobson (log canoe)|''S. C. Dobson'']] are listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref>