As Swift notes, “the lower Chesapeake’s relative sea level rise-the one-two punch of water coming up and land going down-is among the highest on earth.” As a result, “the island is slumping, actually subsiding into the earth’s crust.”
Tangier is just 1.3 square miles, and an area in the northernmost tip of the island has already largely disappeared. In Chesapeake Requiem, journalist Earl Swift recounts his experiences living on Tangier for a year, tracing its history, getting a firsthand look at the environmental impact on the island and discovering what makes the islanders tick. Predicted to succumb to rising tides within 50 years, the island will likely become America’s first climate change victim, forcing its longtime residents to abandon their beloved home. It is this last factor that is directly impacting tiny Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay of Virginia. Take time to make a photocopy of it, so you can relate geographically to Swift’s engaging narrative.Scientists are finding that climate change has many ramifications, including stronger storms, droughts, heat waves and rising sea levels.
One bit of advice: There is a wonderful map of the island at the beginning of the book. The question, Swift points out, is not the number of students, but the teachers, many of them beyond retirement age.įor readers who love the water and bay, “Chesapeake Requiem” will be hard to put down. No one knows how long the school will last. In 1980, there were about 120 students in first through 12th grades. Likewise crime on Tangier was almost nonexistent for years, but the crime rate has risen recently, again because of “young people.”Įducation is centered at the Tangier Combined School, part of the Accomack County Public School System. Today as the population has dwindled, so has church attendance - even more so because many young people do not attend regularly or at all. Many islanders know Tangier is shrinking, but strongly believe “the good Lord” will not let it go away, as Swift points out.įor years, both churches were crowded on Sunday mornings. The islanders have always been religious - Methodism is the focal point, with two churches, Swain Memorial and New Testament, whose members broke away from Swain. A couple other interesting aspects play important roles on Tangier: religion and education.
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