Fire destroyed a back workshop building and a treasure trove of hardwoods in storage at McMartin and Beggins Furniture Makers last night in Wittman.

According to Jim Beggins, a neighbor noticed a fire behind the large complex at 11:00 p.m. last night, and alerted authorities.

Fire crews worked till 3:30 am putting the fire out. An arson investigation is underway.

Jim McMartin and Jim Beggins purchased the old Howeth Lumberyard property in 2004, and completed extensive renovations to create a large artisan complex, housing a number of studio artists and woodworkers.

The furniture makers are known throughout the region for their distinctive furniture, made from local hardwoods. They built the Governor’s Legacy Desk from part of the historic Wye Oak tree, and have designed and built furniture for many historic estates in the region, as well as the Vice President’s Mansion in Washington D.C.

The property includes a 4,500 sq. ft. main building that was untouched by the fire. In the rear of the property, a large shed holding a substantial collection of planked hardwood was completed destroyed, and a rear workshop is partially ruined and water damaged.

The loss includes some 20,000 board feet of local white oak, walnut, red cedar, cherry, maple and poplar, which had been drying in place for years and was intended to become cherished heirloom furniture.

Jim McMartin estimates the loss at around $50,000.

 

 
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Aqua Pools in Easton held their fifth annual charity duck race on Friday evening.  The event benefits the James M. Bryan “Building Dreams for Youth” Foundation.

For a $30 donation, supporters chose a rubber duck from the large table of options including cowboys, pirates, nurses, star-spangled patriots, and more. The ducks were dropped into one end of the pool, and kids kicked along with splashing fountains, slowly moving the flotilla of ducks across the pool, toward the floating edge.

The BBQ Joint and Scottish Highland Creamery offered food, and Hair O’ the Dog provided drinks for the crowd.

Owner Dan Bridges said “There are a lot of fundraising events for adults in our area. We thought it was important to make a family event for the James M. Bryan Foundation. This is a lot of fun for us”.

One lucky winner won a spa, valued at $5000. The true winners were kids on the Shore, who will benefit from the support that the Foundation offers to dozens of local youth programs.

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The white mute swan, gliding across the water, gracefully extending its long neck toward its partner – it’s an iconic waterscape image. At the same time,  it’s an invasive species and has been a big problem in Maryland.

The state DNR and environmental groups spent years trying to deal with the mute swan in Maryland’s waters, and the state undertook a serious effort to eradicate them in 2009. I spoke yesterday with Johnathan McKnight, of the State DNR, for an update on how that project went.

It seems that mute swans first made their way into Maryland in 1962, when an estate owner released 5 mute swans onto their property. Only two of them were female. Each female has about 5 chicks a year, and the population doubled about every four years.

But after 1987, their population exploded.

Why?

That was the year that a federal ban on lead in waterfowl hunting passed. The mute swan only eats vegetation, and they had been ingesting sufficient lead shot along with those underwater grasses to keep the population down. Once that ban went into place, the mute swan population started doubling each year. By 1999, there were 3900 of them.

Wait….what’s the problem with mute swans, anyway? Doesn’t everyone love swans around here, where every third sign shouts “swan cove” or “swan point”?

 Well, ask people who live on the water about mute swans and you’ll hear stories how you couldn’t take a kayak or canoe into the creek without being attacked (the birds protect their nests and young).

And you’ll also hear that people do love the tundra swans – they’re the ones with the black beaks. Tundra swans migrate here every winter by the thousands. They spend much of the winter here, and head back north usually in February or March.

 Of course, it’s easy to love swans when you’re not sharing the creeks with them during boating and fishing season. In winter, people only experience the tundra swans by looking at them through a window. And perhaps because they’re not nesting when they winter here, you don’t hear about attacks.

But the main problem with the invasive mute swans is that they’re NOT migratory – they’re here year round, and feed on underwater grasses. LOTS of underwater grasses. Whole coves, creeks and tributaries’ grass populations are eaten up by mute swans, at a rate that the grass populations can’t sustain themselves.

These underwater grasses are critical to support other life in the Bay and its tributaries. With nutrients from people and agriculture, wastewater, septic and runoff clouding the water, the underwater grass beds have been effectively smothered in recent years. That impacts every single species of life in the Bay. And the mute swans continued to rip the grasses out by the roots, day in and day out, in increasing numbers.

Of course, it’s a lot easier to manage swan populations than it is to manage people populations. Ask any of the county officials in the five states that make up the Chesapeake Bay watershed how they are dealing with reducing their Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) as required by the Clean Water Act. It’s tough to regulate development, agriculture, storm and wastewater, septics across the five states that drain into the Chesapeake.

With the Bay in such a fragile state, it made sense to take efforts to manage the mute swan population. (Yes, shoot them and kill the eggs too).

Net result? Problem under control. McKnight reports that the statewide population now is fewer than 100 birds, and fewer than 50 nests. The state is still actively monitoring the situation with their January waterfowl survey, done by small planes, in which birds are literally counted one by one. The state also counts nests in the spring.

“A couple of escaped pets caused a big problem here” said McKnight.

Everybody loves the Chesapeake Bay. And it’s really threatened now, more than ever. But on some level, you have to wonder about human beings – the most invasive species of all – naming other species as “invasive”, and “managing” them. I’d feel better about it if we do a better job of “managing” ourselves. And honestly, that means me.

Am I reducing my footprint? Am I using resources wisely? My contributions to the Bay’s problems are not insignificant. How many times a week do I need to drive the 34 mile round trip into Easton, anyway?

Might this shift my thinking the next time I see a “Swan Cove” sign? Maybe I’ll stop for one moment, think about the mute swans, and “manage” my own activities in that moment, on that day. That’s really the only option we have left – to take the thousand tiny actions individually, that can collectively, make the difference. And to stay on top of our elected officials to let them know that we will support their work to save the Bay, as expensive and difficult as it is.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation says now is the time – that we have the blueprint, and can take actions now to make the difference. Learn more here.

Maryland’s mute swan problem may be under control….but are we?

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The League of Women Voters held a candidate forum on Thursday evening for the open Oxford Town Commissioner seat. Both candidates – Dorothy Fenwick and Carole Abruzzese – were present and answered a wide range of questions.

Beth Jones facilitated the forum, and formulated questions from members of the audience. More than 75 people were present for the forum.

Carole Abruzzese presently holds a seat on the Commission, after being asked to fill an open position last year. Retired from work at Londonderry, Carole stated that she learned much in her first year as Commissioner. Dorothy Fenwick is challenging her seat, and counts among her accomplishments getting Oxford on the Federal Historic Register in 2005. She purchased her first Oxford home in 1987, and established the Oxford Market in 1994. She has been an active participant in the Oxford Business Association, the Museum and Community Center.

Questions from the audience ranged from concern about the conduct of the Commission to communication with the public, concerns about zoning, vendors and procedures of the town’s business in general. Both candidates agreed that 3 police officers were necessary for Oxford, and that Oxford should establish an ethics policy. Both candidates stated that the swimming pool and the Blue Star Memorial issues are “over”. There was little disagreement between the candidates. The topic of the town not contributing $1000 toward Oxford Day brought the most animated responses from both of the candidates.

The election for the three year term will be held on Tuesday, June 19th in the Community Services Building 2nd floor meeting room, between the hours of 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
videography by Simon Kelly