Deal Island, MD

Deal Island is a census-designated place in Somerset County, Maryland, United States. The 2020 census counted 375 residents. Deal Island is included in the Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area. The small town was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Deal Island Historic District in 2006. Since 1959, Deal Island has hosted an annual Labor Day weekend Skipjack Race. The race features skipjacks, which are traditional wooden sailing vessels with triangular sails, designed for dredging oysters. Taken together, these details give a newcomer a usable picture of Deal Island, where its history, geography, and current gathering places meet. For Deal Island, the memorable detail is the way older history and current gathering places share one local map. Deal Island was historically known as Deal's, Deil's, and Devil's Island. Nearby Dames Quarters also had an unappealing name: Quarters of the Damned. Deal Island includes a historic district.