Editing Tangier, Virginia

{{short description|Town and island in the Chesapeake Bay, United States}}{{More citations needed|date=April 2025}}{{About|the town in the US state of Virginia |the city in Morocco which the town is named after|Tangier|other uses|Tangier (disambiguation)}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name            = Tangier Island, Virginia
| settlement_type          = [[Town]]
| short_description        = no
| nickname                 = 
| motto                    = 
<!-- Images -->
| image_skyline            = Tangier School and Water Tower.jpg
| imagesize                = 
| image_caption            = [[Tangier Combined School]] and the Tangier water tower, two landmarks on the island
| image_flag               = Flag of Tangier, Virginia.svg
| image_seal               = 
<!-- Map -->
|pushpin_map =
|pushpin_label = 
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-shape = yes
| mapframe-point = none
| mapframe-switcher = zooms
<!-- Location -->
| subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name         = United States
| subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1        = [[Virginia]]
| subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Virginia|County]]
| subdivision_name2        = [[Accomack County, Virginia|Accomack]]
<!-- Government -->
| government_footnotes     = 
| government_type          = 
| leader_title             = Mayor
| leader_name              = James Eskridge
| leader_title1            = 
| leader_name1             = 
| established_title        = 
| established_date         = 
<!-- Area -->
| unit_pref  = Imperial
| area_footnotes           = <ref >{{cite web|title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_51.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=January 7, 2024}}</ref>
| area_magnitude           = 
| area_total_sq_mi         = 0.54
| area_land_sq_mi          = 0.54
| area_water_sq_mi         = 0.00
<!-- Population -->
| population_as_of         = [[2020 United States Census|2020]]
| population_footnotes     = 
| population_total         = 436
| population_density_sq_mi = 805.9
<!-- General information -->
| timezone                 = [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
| utc_offset               = -5
| timezone_DST             = EDT
| utc_offset_DST           = -4
| elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
| elevation_m              =
| elevation_ft             = 3
| coordinates              = {{coord|37|49|33|N|75|59|32|W|region:US-VA|display=inline,title}}
| postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
| postal_code              = 23440
| area_code                = [[Area codes 757 and 948|757, 948]]
| blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info               = 51-77520<ref name="GR2">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] | access-date=January 31, 2008 |title=U.S. Census website }}</ref>
| blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info              = 1500206<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|1500206}}</ref>
| website                  = 
| footnotes                = 
|area_total_km2 = 1.40
|area_land_km2 = 1.40
|area_water_km2 = 0.00
|population_density_km2 = 311.42
}}

'''Tangier''' is a town in [[Accomack County, Virginia|Accomack County]], [[Virginia]], United States, on Tangier Island in the [[Chesapeake Bay]]. The population was 436 at the [[2020 United States Census|2020 census]].<ref name="Census2020" /> Since 1850, the island's landmass has been reduced by 67%. Under the mid-range [[sea level rise]] scenario, much of the remaining landmass is expected to be lost in the next 50 years and the town will likely need to be abandoned.<ref name="Schulte">{{Cite journal|last1=Schulte|first1=David M.|last2=Dridge|first2=Karin M.|last3=Hudgins|first3=Mark H.|date=December 10, 2015|title=Climate Change and the Evolution and Fate of the Tangier Islands of Chesapeake Bay, USA|journal=Scientific Reports|language=en|volume=5|issue=1|pages=17890|doi=10.1038/srep17890|issn=2045-2322|pmc=4675185|pmid=26657975|bibcode=2015NatSR...517890S }}</ref>

The people who came to permanently settle the island arrived in the 1770s, and were farmers. In the late 19th century, the islanders began to become more dependent on harvesting crabs and oysters from the Chesapeake Bay.<ref>Mariner (1999), p. 79.</ref> As the [[waterman (occupation)|waterman]] livelihood became more important and more lucrative, there were often conflicts among the [[Fishing dredge|oyster dredgers]] and oyster tongers in the bay, and between those living in Maryland and those living in Virginia.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Botwick and McClane|date=2005|title=Landscapes of resistance: a view of the nineteenth-century Chesapeake Bay oyster fishery|journal=Historical Archaeology|volume=39|issue=3|pages=94–112|doi=10.1007/bf03376696|s2cid=159782897}}</ref>

Many people who live on Tangier speak a distinctive [[dialect]] of [[Southern American English]].<ref>{{Citation|last=People Like Us – The CNAM Channel|title=The odd accent of Tangier VA – American Tongues episode #3|date=February 22, 2008|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIZgw09CG9E| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/AIZgw09CG9E| archive-date=December 11, 2021 | url-status=live|access-date=July 20, 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="PRI" /> Scholars have disputed how much of the dialect is derived from [[British English]] lexicon and phonetics, particularly from [[Cornish diaspora|Cornish]]. Linguist David Shores has argued that there is little evidence for this claim and, while the Tangier dialect is distinctive, it is more likely a mixture of several regional dialects on the Eastern Seaboard.<ref>Shores (2000), pp. 55, 171-172.</ref> The persistence of this dialectal variety is often attributed to the geographic isolation of the population from the mainland. Tangier Island is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/nr/feature/places/14000384.htm|title=Tangier Island Historic District|website=National Park Service}}</ref>

== History ==
Tangier Island was likely used as a hunting and fishing ground by [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] prior to European arrival. A number of Native American artifacts and a large oyster [[midden]] have been found on the island, but the island was not inhabited when it was visited in 1608 by [[John Smith (explorer)|John Smith]]. Smith called the region the "'''Russel Isles'''", but it is unclear whether this name was applied originally to Tangier, the nearby [[Watts Island]], or both.<ref>Mariner (1999), pp. 1–3.</ref>

In 1670, Ambrose White, a tavern owner from [[Accomac, Virginia]], received a [[Land patent|patent]] for the island. The next year, it was transferred to Charles Scarburgh and John West, two prominent estate owners from Accomack County who used the island to graze livestock.<ref>Mariner (1999), pp. 10–11.</ref>

Today many of the inhabitants have the surname Crockett, which was the name of the first permanent Anglo-American settler in the late 18th century, John Crockett.<ref>{{cite web |title=Trump told the mayor of a disappearing island not to worry about sea-level rise. Here's what it's like to live there. |website=[[Business Insider]] |date=October 2, 2018 |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/chesapeake-requiem-life-on-tangier-island-rising-seas-2018-9?r=MX&IR=T |access-date=August 10, 2021}}</ref> Other common surnames on the island include Pruitt, Thomas, Marshall, Charnock, Dise, Shores, and Parks. By 1900 there were 1,064 inhabitants.{{cn|date=December 2022}}

The [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|British]] used the island as a staging area in 1813 and 1814 under [[Rear admiral (Royal Navy)|Rear Admiral]] [[George Cockburn]] during the [[War of 1812]], constructing [[Fort Albion]] when there were as many as 1,200 British troops recorded as being present on the island at one time.  Many [[Slavery in the United States|black slaves]] escaped to the British on Tangier and were given their freedom. Some joined the [[Corps of Colonial Marines]]. When a dozen British sailors were captured, their account both of the hardships encountered there, with shortages of food and water on the island, and of the construction of Fort Albion were reported in a local newspaper.<ref>{{cite web |title=Farmer's Repository |date=July 28, 1814 |url=http://www.genealogybank.com/gbnk/newspapers/explore/USA/West_Virginia/Charlestown/Farmers_Repository/|publisher=Genealogybank.com |access-date=September 22, 2012}}</ref>

Tangier was used as the base for the attack on the American capital in the decisive British victory at [[Battle of Bladensburg|Bladensburg]] and the subsequent [[Burning of Washington]] in August 1814. This was followed by the [[Battle of Baltimore]], when a failed British naval bombardment and barge assault on [[Fort McHenry]] in [[Baltimore]] harbor and the simultaneous [[Battle of North Point]] southeast of the city on September 12–14, 1814, influenced [[Francis Scott Key]]'s writing of the poem that became "[[The Star-Spangled Banner]]", named the American national anthem in 1931.<ref>{{cite news |last=Miller |first=John J. |title=Exotic Tangier |url=http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=YjU1OTc0Y2ViOWQ1MjJmMTA5NTQ1ODJlZTUyNzY3MmI= |work=[[National Review]] |date=August 2, 2005 |access-date=March 4, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070430212938/http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=YjU1OTc0Y2ViOWQ1MjJmMTA5NTQ1ODJlZTUyNzY3MmI= |archive-date=April 30, 2007 }}</ref>

In February 1936, the US Army Air Corps used 13 [[Martin B-10|B-10B]]s of the [[49th Bomb Squadron]] to drop supplies to the residents of [[Virginia]]'s [[Tangier Island]] and [[Maryland]]'s [[Smith Island, Maryland|Smith Island]]; with ships unable to reach the islands due to heavy ice in the [[Chesapeake Bay]], the islanders faced starvation after a severe winter storm.<ref name="TouchofGreatnesspp4142">[https://books.google.com/books?id=OsIBdVV_YOAC&pg=PA43&lpg=PA43 Bentley, Stewart W., Jr., PhD., ''The Touch of Greatness: Colonel William C. Bentley, Jr., USAAC/USAF; Aviation Pioneer''], Bloomington, Indiana: AuthorHouse, 2010, {{ISBN|978-1-4490-2386-7}}'', pp. 41–42.''</ref><ref>Anonymous, "Bombing Planes to Bring Food to Ice Victims," ''Chicago Tribune'', 2 February 1936.</ref>

The original church on the island was called Lee's Bethel and burned down in the 19th century. A bench marking its location is in the graveyard in Canton. The oldest church that still exists on the island, Swain Memorial Methodist Church, was established in 1835. The only other currently standing church on the island is called the New Testament Congregation, established in 1946, and is a [[non-denominational Christian]] place of worship. For various reasons, both historical and practical (such as overcrowding), burials are sometimes located in the yards of houses. There are also churchyard cemeteries at each of the island's churches.{{cn|date=December 2022}}

[[File:TangierCemetery.jpg|thumb|left|250px|A typical cemetery on the island, showing overcrowding]]

Three 21st-century hurricanes, [[Hurricane Isabel|Isabel]] in 2003, [[Hurricane Ernesto (2006)|Ernesto]] in 2006, and [[Hurricane Sandy|Sandy]] in 2012, caused much of the island to flood.  A few houses were abandoned or torn down due to storm damage, while others have been elevated on new foundations. New buildings continue to be built on the island.{{cn|date=December 2022}}

In the 1960s, the [[United States Army]] took over portions of Tangier Island via [[Eminent domain in the United States|eminent domain]], forcing some residents, including Walter Crockett and Maggie Eskridge Crockett, to move to [[Exmore, Virginia|Exmore]], on mainland Virginia, so the military could conduct missile testing.<ref name="gpo.gov">{{cite web |url=https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2002-title33-vol3/pdf/CFR-2002-title33-vol3-sec334-210.pdf |title=§334.210 Chesapeake Bay, in vicinity of Tangier Island; naval guided missiles test operations area |publisher=Code of Federal Regulations (33 CFR Ch. II (7–1–02 Edition)) |pages=507–508 |date=July 1, 2002 |access-date=August 11, 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/search/pagedetails.action?collectionCode=CFR&searchPath=Title+33%2FChapter+II%2FPart+334&granuleId=CFR-2002-title33-vol3-sec334-210&packageId=CFR-2002-title33-vol3&oldPath=Title+33%2FChapter+II%2FPart+263%2FSubpart+D&fromPageDetails=true&collapse=true&browsePath=Title+33%2FChapter+II%2FPart+334%2FSection+334.210&fromBrowse=true |title=33 CFR 334.210 - Chesapeake Bay, in vicinity of Tangier Island; naval guided missiles test operations area |publisher=GPO |access-date=June 14, 2018}}</ref>

== Geography ==
[[File:TangierMap.svg|thumb|upright=.7|Map of Tangier and its surrounding islands]]
Tangier Island is located in the [[Chesapeake Bay]] in [[Accomack County, Virginia]]. The island is composed of three sandy ridges divided by marshes and tidal streams. These three ridges, called West Ridge, Main Ridge, and Canton Ridge from west to east, run parallel north-to-south.<ref>Shores (2000), pp. 69-70.</ref> Most of the island's institutions, including the post office, restaurants, and [[Tangier Combined School]], are located on the Main Ridge.<ref name=":0">Shores (2000), p. 75.</ref> The island's West Ridge has four bridges to the Main Ridge and a seawall built in 1990 to combat erosion, and it is also home to [[Tangier Island Airport]].<ref>Shores (2000), p. 76.</ref><ref>Shores (2000), p. 67.</ref> Canton Ridge is connected by just one bridge and, while once the largest ridge with up to 30 families, today is the smallest ridge and home to just a few families.<ref name=":0" />

Some smaller, mostly uninhabited, islands surround Tangier. The largest of these, called Uppards and located just north of the main island, was home to a community of up to 40 families called Canaan before its abandonment in 1928 due to the enlargement of the channel separating it from Tangier. Today, the island contains a few structures used as hunting lodges.<ref>Shores (2000), pp. 76–77.</ref> Port Isobel, also called East Point Marsh, lies to the east-northeast and is home to an education center owned by the [[Chesapeake Bay Foundation]].<ref name=":1">Shores (2000), p. 77.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Port Isobel Island Environmental Education Center |url=http://www.cbf.org/about-cbf/locations/virginia/facilities/port-isobel-environmental-education-center.html |access-date=August 11, 2018 |work=Chesapeake Bay Foundation}}</ref> Some other formerly inhabited islands lie north of Uppards, and some others have been submerged; these include Shanks, Wheeler's Hole, Fishbone, and Piney Islands.<ref name=":1" />

===Reduction in land mass===
[[File:Tangier Island flooding.jpg|thumb|upright=.75|left|Tangier Island in October 2023, taken at high tide from the steps of [[Tangier Combined School]].]]
The island is at risk of disappearing due to upland to wetland conversion and rising sea levels caused by [[climate change]];<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Wu |first1=Zehao |last2=Schulte |first2=David |date=2021 |title=Predictions of the Climate Change-Driven Exodus of the Town of Tangier, the Last Offshore Island Fishing Community in Virginia's Chesapeake Bay |journal=Frontiers in Climate |volume=3 |doi=10.3389/fclim.2021.779774 |issn=2624-9553|doi-access=free }}</ref> since 1850, the island's landmass has been reduced by 67%. Under a mid-range [[sea level rise]] scenario, two of the islands' three ridges are expected to become wetland in the 2030s, with the third expected to succumb by 2051.<ref name="Schulte" />

Many residents believe that erosion is the cause of the increasing incidence and severity of flooding.<ref name=" BBC News">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15395685|title=Altered States: The disappearing island in the Chesapeake Bay|last=Strasser|first=Franz|date=October 25, 2011|publisher=BBC|access-date=October 30, 2011}}</ref> A 2015 study by Davide M. Schulte, Karin M. Dridge, and Mark H. Hudgins, all members of the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|Army Corps of Engineers]], concluded that Tangier has 25–50 years of habitability remaining and that the subsidence of the ridges is ongoing since at least the mid-19th century. The authors also conclude that the primary causes of the [[subsidence]] in the southern Chesapeake Bay region are [[Sea level rise|sea-level rise]] due to the melting of the [[Laurentide Ice Sheet|Laurentide ice sheet]], groundwater extraction on mainland Virginia, and the remaining effects of the [[Chesapeake Bay impact crater]] near [[Cape Charles, Virginia]], 35.5 million years ago.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Schulte |first1=David M. |last2=Dridge |first2=Karin M. |last3=Hudgins |first3=Mark H. |title=Climate Change and the Evolution and Fate of the Tangier Islands of Chesapeake Bay, USA |journal=Scientific Reports |date=December 10, 2015 |volume=5 |issue=1 |page=17890 |doi=10.1038/srep17890 |pmid=26657975 |pmc=4675185 |bibcode=2015NatSR...517890S |language=en |issn=2045-2322|doi-access=free }}</ref>

The town has been talking with political representatives for decades to get protection for the island in the form of jetties or sea walls. The Town, the History Museum, and townspeople continue to raise money for their sea wall fund.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/10/magazine/should-the-united-states-save-tangier-island-from-oblivion.html|title=Should the United States Save Tangier Island From Oblivion? |last=Gertner|first=Jon|date=July 6, 2016 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=July 20, 2017 |language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> In 2017, [[CNN]] aired a story about Tangier that featured the town's mayor, James W. Eskridge. [[Donald Trump|President Donald Trump]] called the mayor personally to assure him that the town would survive but offered no concrete form of relief or financial aid.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/06/14/trump-calls-mayor-of-shrinking-chesapeake-island-and-tells-him-not-to-worry-about-it/|title=Trump calls mayor of shrinking Chesapeake island and tells him not to worry about it |last=Andrews |first=Travis M. |newspaper=Washington Post |date=June 14, 2017 |access-date=July 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://wavy.com/2017/06/13/president-donald-trump-calls-mayor-of-tangier-island/|title=President Donald Trump calls mayor of Tangier Island|last=Schaad|first=Tom |date=June 14, 2017 |website=WAVY-TV|access-date=July 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=U.S. island in danger of being swallowed by sea |publisher=CNN |medium=video |url=http://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2017/06/09/lead-gray-tangier-island-va-at-risk-of-disappearing-pkg.cnn/video/playlists/mobile-digital-shorts/|access-date=July 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/06/14/trump-tells-tangier-island-mayor-not-worry-sea-level-rise/394688001/|title=Trump tells Tangier Island mayor not to worry about sea-level rise |last=Vaughn |first=Carol |newspaper=USA Today |access-date=July 20, 2017}}</ref>
{{clear}}

===Marshes and waterfowl===
[[File:Townoftangier.JPG|thumb|upright=1.25|The marshes outside of town]]
Tangier and nearby islands are valuable tidal salt marsh habitat for waterfowl, especially as there is a general absence of predators for ground-nesting birds and birds in general.<ref name=Audubon>{{cite web |url=https://www.audubon.org/important-bird-areas/chesapeake-bay-islands |title=Important Bird Areas: Chesapeake Bay Islands |date=September 12, 2016 |publisher=National Audubon Society |access-date=August 11, 2018}}</ref> Tangier marshes are home to many birds, including [[pelican]]s, [[great blue heron|blue herons]], [[Rallidae|rails]], [[egret]]s, several varieties of [[duck]]s and [[geese]], and [[osprey]]. The group of islands is one of the "few remaining population strongholds for American Black Ducks in Virginia."<ref name=Audubon />

Including the surrounding marshes, Tangier Island totals less than {{convert|740|acres|abbr=off}}, but only {{convert|83|acres|abbr=off}} are high enough for habitation. The highest point of land is barely {{convert|4|ft}} above sea level, and about {{convert|9|acres|abbr=off}} of Tangier shoreline are estimated to erode into the Chesapeake each year. Local residents see their existence threatened from falling catches, state regulation of the waterman livelihood on the Bay, constant erosion, and increasingly frequent flooding.<ref>{{cite news |first=Scott |last=Harper |newspaper=The Virginian-Pilot |date=May 12, 2012 |url=http://hamptonroads.com/2012/05/residents-drowning-tangier-island-look-lifeline |title=Residents of drowning Tangier Island look for lifeline |access-date=August 11, 2018}}</ref>

==Transportation==
[[File:Reedville-Tangier cruise boat.jpg|thumb|The ''Chesapeake Breeze'', in port at Reedville, Virginia.]]
The only modes of transportation to and from the island are boats and airplanes. There is an [[Tangier Island Airport|airport]], open from dawn to dusk.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.airnav.com/airport/KTGI|title=AirNav: KTGI – Tangier Island Airport|website=www.airnav.com}}</ref> There are two boats that travel regularly from [[Crisfield, Maryland|Crisfield]], [[Maryland]], across Tangier Sound to Tangier.  Passengers and mail are carried on these boats. The [[mail boat]], the ''Courtney Thomas,'' leaves Tangier at 8:00 am and leaves Crisfield at 12:30 pm. The ''Steven Thomas'', a 300-passenger cruise boat, leaves Crisfield at 12:30 pm and departs Tangier at 4:00 pm during the summer season – from [[Memorial Day]] weekend through mid-October. In the summer season, the ''Chesapeake Breeze'' travels daily from [[Reedville, Virginia]], on the Western Shore, leaving Reedville at 10:00 am and leaving Tangier at 2:00 pm. The ferry service to and from [[Onancock, Virginia]] on the ''Joyce Marie II'' runs daily from the first weekend of May through the first weekend of October.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tangierferry.com/ |title=Tangier Onancock Ferry |access-date=August 11, 2018}}</ref>

Transportation on the island does not rely heavily on automobiles. Some residents outfit [[golf cart]]s with passenger trailers to offer "historical tours" of the island for tourists. The roads on Tangier are wide enough for two golf carts. Tourists and islanders often use golf carts, boats, mopeds, and bikes, but some have trucks and cars.

== Language ==
[[File:Monologue with 93 year old white male, Tangier Island, Virginia.ogg|thumb|start=00:16|A recording of a resident of Tangier Island who was born in the late 1800s, showcasing the island's unique accent]]
Many who live on Tangier Island speak a distinctive [[dialect]] of [[Southern American English]], which scholars have disputed as derived from 17th and 18th-century [[British English]] ([[Early Modern English|Early Modern]] and [[Modern English]]) lexicon and phonetics. Historical linguist David Shores has noted that, while it may sound like a British variety of English, the dialect is a creation of its own time and place off the eastern shore of Virginia, preserving certain features of its British origins in part due to isolation, but not unchanged.<ref>Shores (2000), pp. 171-172.</ref> The persistence of this dialectical variety is often attributed to the geographic isolation of the population from the mainland. Many non-scholarly sources (i.e. the popular media and press) report that the unique dialect originated from early European settlers from [[Cornwall]] and [[Devon]] in the [[United Kingdom]],<ref name="PRI">{{cite web |url=https://www.pri.org/stories/2014-07-20/island-chesapeake-bay-disappearing-and-so-british-dialect-and-piece-history| title=An island in Chesapeake Bay is disappearing — and so is a British dialect and a piece of history |publisher=PRI |access-date=September 16, 2017 |date=July 20, 2014}}</ref> but this is disputed by Shores.<ref>Shores (2000), p. 55.</ref> [[BBC Travel]] made a short  film on the dialect.<ref>{{cite web |title=The tiny US island with a British accent |url=http://www.bbc.com/travel/gallery/20180206-the-tiny-us-island-with-a-british-accent}}</ref>

Before bridges were built, the only form of transport between or off the ridges was by boat, allowing the islands to stay isolated from the mainland.

The local accent is sometimes compared to that of the "[[High tider|Hoi Toiders]]" of the [[Outer Banks]] of [[North Carolina]]. There are some similarities, but the dialects are distinct. [[Smith Island, Maryland]], which is near Tangier, has a dialect that is more similar to that of Tangier in terms of phonetics and lexicon.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Schilling-Estes|first=Natalie|date=1997|title=Accommodation versus concentration: dialect death in two post-insular island communities|journal=American Speech|volume=72|issue=1|pages=12–32|doi=10.2307/455606|jstor=455606}}</ref>

== Economy ==

===Industry===
[[File:2000-06-10 01 Watermen returning from lobster fishing to Tangier Island, Virginia USA.jpg|thumb|Watermen returning from fishing to Tangier Island. A tourist boat is visible in the background.]]
Today, the inhabitants of Tangier rely on [[crab]]bing to make a living. Tangier is often called the "[[soft-shell crab]] capital of the world", and has been referred to as one of the last [[Waterman (occupation)|waterman]] communities.<ref name="blakely2010">{{cite news |last=Blakely |first=Stephen |date=August 31, 2010 |title=Tangier Island, Va |url=http://www.soundingsonline.com/features/destinations/263742-tangier-island-va |access-date=August 11, 2018 |work=Soundings}}</ref> Most fishermen catch and sell crabs and [[oyster]]s. North of the island are many free-standing docks not connected to land which fishermen use to hold crabs while they [[ecdysis|moult]]. Once a major industry on the island, oystering has returned in recent years as a supplement to the more prominent crabbing business. In 2014, a new oyster-farming company, called [[Tangier Island Oyster Company]], was founded by a group that includes a former [[attorney general of Virginia]], [[Ken Cuccinelli]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/ken-cuccinellis-post-politics-endeavor-oyster-farming/2015/01/04/1dc34126-8a15-11e4-8ff4-fb93129c9c8b_story.html |title=Ken Cucinelli's post-politics endeavor |first=Jackson |last=Landers |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=January 4, 2015}}</ref>

The primary industry on the island besides fishing is [[tourism]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB119041118305835671?mod=weekend_journal_primary_hs |title=Virginia's Time Machine – WSJ.com |first=Candace |last=Jackson |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] | date=September 22, 2007|publisher=[[Dow Jones & Company|Dow Jones]] | location=[[New York City|New York]] | issn=0099-9660 |access-date=September 1, 2011}}</ref> During the summer, several cruise ships come to the island each day, allowing passengers to explore and buy goods from the islanders. Two [[bed-and-breakfast]] inns can accommodate a limited number of overnight guests. There are several restaurants and gift shops for the tourist trade.{{cn|date=December 2022}}

===Activities===
[[File:Tangier Post Office.JPG|thumb|left|Tangier's post office]]
With all the means of transportation and regular telephone service, residents have regular ways of staying in touch with the mainland. The island also has [[cable television]] and internet service. The island has several restaurants, an ice cream shop, four gift shops and a hardware store. There is a wild beach without a boardwalk or concessions. There is a historical museum and interpretive cultural center. Tangier is known for its seafood dishes, especially its soft-shell crab sandwiches.{{cn|date=December 2022}}

The major new addition to the island has been the Tangier Island History Museum,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tangierhistorymuseum.org |title=Coming Soon – Future home of something quite cool |publisher=Tangier History Museum}}</ref> which created historical markers that line Tangier's streets and provides a "historical tour" of the island.

==Institutions and culture==
The Tangier Island Health Foundation<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tangierclinic.org/|title=Tangier Island Health Foundation |year=2014 |access-date=August 11, 2018}}</ref> runs the Nichols Health Center on Tangier, which is operated by the Riverside Health System,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riversideonline.com/Foundation/Tangier-Island.cfm |title=Our Commitment to the People of Tangier Island|website=Riverside Health System }}</ref> which also operates on the [[Eastern Shore of Virginia]] and in [[Hampton Roads]].

Historically, there were two cases of [[Tangier disease]], a recessive genetic disorder that causes high blood cholesterol. These two instances represented the first ever discovery of the disease. Thus, the disease was subsequently named after the island. There are very few residents with this genetic anomaly who currently live on the island.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://esvhs.blogspot.com/2014/04/tangier-islanders-make-medical-history.html |title=Tangier Islanders Make Medical History| last=Fournier |first=Arthur |date=April 2, 2014 |website=History Between the Waters }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/tangier-disease |title=Tangier Disease |website=U.S. National Library of Medicine }}</ref>

The residents of Tangier enjoy regular cable television and internet access through a [[Microwave transmission|microwave tower]] installed in spring 2010. There are phone lines on the island. One physician assistant and a number of registered nurses live on the island. David Nichols treated residents for thirty years, piloting a Cessna 182 or Robinson helicopter for once-a-week visits.<ref name=Miller2010>{{cite web |last1=Miller |first1=Alyssa J. |title=Tangier Island doctor's legacy lives on |url=http://www.aopa.org/News-and-Video/All-News/2010/December/30/Tangier-Island-doctors-legacy-lives-on |date=December 30, 2010 |publisher=Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association |access-date=April 14, 2015}}</ref> In January 2007, he was profiled by [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] ''[[World News with Diane Sawyer|World News Tonight]]'' as its Person of the Week.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://abcnews.go.com/WNT/PersonOfWeek/story?id=2808883 |title=Person of the Week: David Nichols |date=January 19, 2007 |publisher=ABC News |access-date=February 18, 2010}}</ref> Nichols died at the age of 62 on December 30, 2010, after a battle with cancer. Four months earlier, a new clinic was christened in his name, as he and a few others had raised funds for its construction.<ref name=Miller2010 /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2010/dec/30/dr-david-nichols-tangier-islands-angel-dies-ar-743893/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110101031118/http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2010/dec/30/dr-david-nichols-tangier-islands-angel-dies-ar-743893/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 1, 2011 |title=Dr. David Nichols, Tangier Island's angel, dies |newspaper=Times-Dispatch |location=Richmond, Virginia |date=December 30, 2010 |access-date=September 22, 2012}}</ref> Emergency patients travel by helicopter to [[Crisfield, Maryland|Crisfield]] or [[Salisbury, Maryland|Salisbury]] hospitals in Maryland. Although the island has one operational power plant, it is used mainly for emergencies. Power comes in from the Eastern Shore of Virginia through an underwater cable.

[[File:SwainMemorialUMC.jpg|thumb|left|Swain Memorial United Methodist Church]]
[[Methodism]] has been and remains a very strong influence on Tangier, stemming from the charismatic preaching and revival camp meetings held there in the early 1800s by Joshua Thomas, the famed "parson of the islands." Because of their ties to the Northern Methodist Church, Tangier residents in the 19th century did not support slavery and did not join Virginia in seceding from the Union during the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Unique Speak |url=https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/unique-speak/ |website=[[National Geographic]] |access-date=27 January 2025}}</ref>

A local ordinance prohibits the sale of alcohol, making the island "dry." In 1999, the Tangier town council blocked [[Warner Brothers]] from using the island to film the [[Kevin Costner]] film ''[[Message in a Bottle (film)|Message in a Bottle]]'', objecting to the script's drinking, profanity, and sex.<ref name="blakely2010" />

=== Education ===
[[Accomack County Public Schools]] operates the [[Tangier Combined School]], the sole comprehensive K–12 public school in the Commonwealth of Virginia. {{Asof|2018}}, it had 60 students.<ref name="SwiftTrump">{{cite magazine|author=Swift, Eric|url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/08/19/tangier-island-donald-trump-2016-219349|title=The Doomed Island That Loves Trump|magazine=[[Politico Magazine]]|date=August 19, 2018|access-date=August 19, 2018}}</ref>

== Demographics ==
{{US Census population
|1910= 698
|1920= 962
|1930= 1120
|1940= 1020
|1950= 915
|1960= 876
|1970= 814
|1980= 771
|1990= 659
|2000= 604
|2010= 727
|2020= 436
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=January 7, 2024}}</ref>
}}
=== 2020 census ===
As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], there were 436 people, in 205 households, comprising 213 families residing in the town. The [[population density]] was 805.9 people per square mile. There were 271 housing units at an average density of 500.9 per square mile. The [[Race and ethnicity in the United States census#2020 census|racial makeup]] of the town was 97.9% White, with two Asian residents and seven residents of two or more races. The median age was 54.6 years.<ref name="Census2020">{{Cite web |date=2020 |title=Tangier town, District 6, Accomack County, Virginia |url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Tangier_town,_District_6,_Accomack_County,_Virginia?g=0700000US510019194677520 |access-date=January 7, 2024 |website=[[2020 United States Census]]}}</ref>

Of the 205 households, 17.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.8% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, and 40% were non-families. Lone individuals comprised 38.5% of all households, and 26.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.09.<ref name="Census2020" />

== See also ==
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Accomack County, Virginia]]
* [[Smith Island, Maryland]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
=== Print sources ===
*{{cite book |last1=Mariner |first1=Kirk |title=God's Island: The History of Tangier |date=1999 |publisher=Miona Publications |isbn=978-0964839359 |url=https://archive.org/details/godsislandhistor0000mari/mode/2up}}
*{{cite book |last1=Shores |first1=David L. |title=Tangier Island: Place, People, and Talk |date=2000 |publisher=University of Delaware Press |isbn=9780874137170|url=https://archive.org/details/tangier-island-shores/mode/2up}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website|http://www.tangierisland-va.com/}}
* [http://www.bbc.com/travel/gallery/20180206-the-tiny-us-island-with-a-british-accent The tiny US island with a British accent]: For hundreds of years, the residents of Tangier Island have maintained a unique relic of their colonial past. By Veena Rao & Eliot Stein, February 7, 2018, bbc.com

{{Accomack County, Virginia}}
{{Virginia towns}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:English-American culture in Virginia]]
[[Category:Cornish-American history]]
[[Category:Car-free islands of the United States]]
[[Category:Fishing communities in the United States]]
[[Category:Towns in Accomack County, Virginia]]
[[Category:Virginia islands of the Chesapeake Bay]]
[[Category:Towns in Virginia]]
[[Category:Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Accomack County, Virginia]]
[[Category:Virginia populated places on the Chesapeake Bay]]
[[Category:Beaches of Virginia]]
[[Category:Islands of Accomack County, Virginia]]