DOBBINS ISLAND - These steep, sandstone cliffs form the great memory bank of the Magothy River, holding within them centuries-old tales of buried treasure and budding romance.
Throughout history, boaters have flocked to this crescent-shaped wisp of land across from Pasadena where an 18th-century Dutch ship reportedly wrecked and wild goats once roamed.
As the shoreline around it rapidly develops, Dobbins Island has remained unchanged, the sort of place where a newcomer could be forgiven for half-expecting TV's Gilligan to emerge from the carpet of greenery for a marshmallow roast.
But now the long-uninhabited island, too, may be changing.
Longtime Anne Arundel County residents Jim and Edward Wilson, who bought the island three years ago, are selling it. Priced at $950,000 - about half of what the brothers were asking a year ago - the island may land in a private developer's hands by year's end.
"It has stayed in a different era, but everything else has changed," said Peggy Penniman, great-great-granddaughter of George W. Dobbin, who bought the land in 1853 for a family retreat. "It's one of the things that I think is still special about this place and ultimately what was so hard about keeping it."
With its curved harbor a natural spot for mooring boats, the 7-acre island has long been a weekend destination. It is thought to be one of the only inhabitable islands off Maryland's Western Shore.
Atop the bluffs sit a tangle of trees and a nature path, which winds around to an old well that is filled with water year-round. From a distance, the trees look like willowy palms, creating an effect that is more South Pacific than north Annapolis.
"It's a treasure. It's part of Maryland's history," said Kathy Lundvall, a RE/MAX real estate agent who is marketing the property. "Anyone who wants to buy an island, they better step forward right away."
The Wilsons bought the island as part of a package deal from Dobbin family heirs. It included shorefront known as Grays Point and a nearby property, Little Island. They quickly found a buyer for Grays Point. A local builder bought Little Island, constructing a white house with a lighthouse replica attached and using a hovercraft to reach the shore.
Hopes for a park
The Wilson brothers hoped that a government agency or environmental group would buy Dobbins, a de facto boater's park about 2,700 feet from shore. The island is popular for its 4,000 feet of shoreline, 1,000 feet of beach and 50-foot cliffs.
