History of the Talbot SCD

The proverb “all things come to those who wait” couldn’t be truer than when describing the process of forming the Talbot Soil Conservation District.

From late 1945 to early 1958, multiple attempts to form a district in Talbot failed due to lack of interest from a majority of the agricultural community. The earliest attempt was in 1945, when a total of 1,200 card notices were sent out, and only 35 farmers attended a District hearing throughout the County. A total of four separate District hearings were provided, one in St. Michaels Bay Hundred District (9 farmers), Cordova (15 farmers), Easton (4 farmers) and Trappe (7 farmers). A ballot measure was not voted on but the majority of attendees favored the organization of a District. The county Extension Ag Agent was tasked with organizing the District hearings. Without enough support, enthusiasm for the creation of a District waned.

Over the years through consist persuasion of T.B. Symons (Dean and Director of the University of Maryland), more attempts were tried. Dr. Symons had received several phone calls from Talbot County farmers seeking assistance in neighboring counties for surface drainage. Also, several letters back and forth between Dr. Symons and Mr. Rudolph Brown (Ag Agent) document how eager the Governor was in establishing the final District in Maryland.

At the time, surface drainage was the primary issue for farmers. Mr. Brown noted in one of his several editorials in the local paper that the “Extension Service Drainage Engineer has taken care of every request for engineering assistance on drainage that has come into my office in these many years.” In 1949 he wrote that “Talbot farmers have twice had the opportunities to organize a District… with drainage our principal problem maybe they feel about the Soil Conservation Service District as they did about Tax Ditch and see no need for one.” Obviously Mr. Brown was personally not in favor of the creation of the District and was an outspoken critic for the need for a new District.

Mr. Rudolph Brown left the Extension Service around 1955. The new agent, Mr. Roscoe Brown- no relation, finally seemed willing to invest enough energy into the process to get more participation from the farmers. The last attempt worked and a final vote was cast on April 15, 1958, which had 184 in favor and 107 opposed.

The Talbot SCD was the 24th and final District to form in the State of Maryland.

On April 15, 2022, we celebrated our 64th year of providing support to our agricultural landowners and farmers in Talbot County.