THE STATE OF DELMARVA

book…a brief relation of the state of delmarva. should the delmarva peninsula break off into its own state? while the suggestion has been debated for the past 150-plus years – including a few half-hearted succession bills in annapolis when maryland’s eastern shore felt it was not getting its fair share from the general assembly – the answer is probably “no.” such is the conclusion reached by dr. phillip lebel, retired professor of economics at montclair state university, nj, in his new book a brief relation of the state of delmarva: accounting for the singularity, insularity and other irregularities of a population in economic and cultural evolution, from maryland history press. lebel, a native of salisbury, said he first considered the book during trips back to the area to visit his mother, ellen bloodsworth, a 1936 su alumna, before he moved back to the region himself. his inspiration came, in part, from her collection of local history books. “it was my effort to come to terms with what ‘delmarva’ meant in many different dimensions,” he said. though he was familiar with the region, he researched and wrote the book from the eyes of an “outsider,” tracing delmarva’s history from the mason-dixon map of 1769 through colonial times, the civil war, the emergence of the railroad as an good morning delmarva!