Eastern Shore Land Conservancy

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Mission Statement
Conserve, steward, and advocate for the unique rural landscape of the Eastern Shore.

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January 2014

ESLC Releases 2014 State Legislative Agenda

ANNAPOLIS — Today, Eastern Shore Land Conservancy released its 2014 State Legislative Agenda calling for major investments in rural Maryland, robust land conservation funding, and continued support for locally produced renewable energy projects. Some of the items in the agenda include support for continued conservation program funding, support for the Rural Maryland Prosperity Investment Fund, support for a Cross-Bay Travel Alternatives Study bill, and support for the 2014 Community Renewable Energy Generation bill. ESLC’s agenda points out that conservation monies support much more than farms and scenic landscapes and that these funds help support hunting grounds, parks, bike paths, public access sites and more. “We need to support our farms and resource-based industries here on the Shore, and we can do that through the support for Rural Legacy, Program Open Space, and Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation funding”, said ESLC Policy Manager Josh Hastings. In addition to support for expansion of Maryland Wildlands, the agenda calls for the Maryland General Assembly to pass a Cross-Bay Travel Alternatives study bill which its says could help alleviate Bay Bridge traffic congestion while evaluating options for private investment in cross bay travel. ESLC’s white paper on transportation is available under Public Policy Resources at eslc.org. “How we travel in our rural region is a critical piece of our quality of life,” said ESLC Deputy Director Amy Owsley. “We hope to help focus attention on how best to make the most of our infrastructure through investments in transit and transportation policy innovations. Creativity and partnerships would go a long way to easing some of our most pressing transportation challenges.” ESLC also supports the 2014 Community Renewable Energy bill, which is said to allow Maryland farms and other rural businesses to install renewable-energy-generating devices such as solar panels or a wind turbine and share the energy credits among neighboring subscribers. These

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The Good Luck Farm

BUCKTOWN – A piece of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Scenic Byway has been preserved with a conservation easement, permanently protecting the historic and ecological features of the property. The Goodluck Farm is owned by Millie Lake, Benito Lake, Ellen Bronte Lake, and Ed James. Millie is the granddaughter of Martin Lake, who was born as a slave on The Brodess Plantation before the Civil War, according to a family history written by James. On his fourth try, Martin Lake escaped to freedom on the Underground Railroad (before Tubman was a conductor). Tubman once was enslaved on this property, and according to family history, Martin Lake met her. He joined the Union Army and after the war returned to Dorchester County. He worked for the Brodess family on the lands where he formerly was a slave, and the family gave him about three acres of farmland. Martin Lake’s son, Monroe Lake Sr., inherited one acre of the land and traded it to a family member, Millie Lake Clash. Monroe Lake Sr. also purchased other portions of the Brodess Plantation as they became available. “We are honored to work with the Lake family on protecting this important piece of the Eastern Shore,” said ESLC Executive Director Rob Etgen. “The stories that have occurred on and around this farm are critical to understanding where we have come from – and more importantly where we are going as a community.  The conservation easement will protect and enrich these stories for future generations.” The Lake family, descendants of a slave on the farm, now own a large portion of the former plantation and maintain the Brodess family cemetery that still exists there. The Good Luck Farm is preserved under Program Open Space Coastal Resilience Easements, designed to protect areas that could be prone to high waters and storm surges. The easement protects

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