The J. Millard Tawes Historical Museum, Somers Cove Marina, 3 Ninth St. (tel. 410/968-2501; www.crisfieldheritagefoundation.org), was founded in 1982 to honor the Crisfield-born former governor of Maryland. Exhibits detail the town's history as well as its boat-building and seafood industries. Open year-round, Monday through Saturday from 9am to 5pm. Admission is $2.50 for adults, $1 for children 6 to 12. This is also the starting point for the Port of Crisfield Escorted Walking Tour, offered from Memorial Day to Labor Day, Monday through Saturday at 10am. To explore by trolley, take the Ward Brothers Heritage Tour, which includes a stop at the workshop of decoy carvers Lem and Steve Ward.
About 15 miles north of Crisfield on U.S. Route 13 is Princess Anne, a small country town listed on the National Register of Historic Places. All the historic homes are privately owned, except the grand neoclassical Teackle Mansion, 11736 Mansion St. (tel. 410/651-2238; www.teackle.mansion.museum). It was built in 1801 by Littleton Dennis Teackle, a shipping magnate and an associate of Thomas Jefferson. It's open for guided tours April through mid-December, Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday from 1 to 3pm; and mid-December through March, Sunday from 1 to 3pm. Inside, you'll see elaborate plaster ceilings, a 7-foot fireplace, a beehive oven, American Chippendale furniture, a Tudor-Gothic pipe organ, and an 1806 silk world map. Admission is $5 for adults, free for children under 12.
