If you’ve ever dreamed of owning a Maryland icon, now is your chance. The bakery that produces the authentic Smith Island Cake—Maryland’s official state dessert—is for sale.
People on tiny Smith Island, eight miles off of Crisfield on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, say many companies claim to make “Smith Island Cakes”, but they are more like “Smith Island style”. The Smith Island Cake is known for its thin layers, fudge icing, and the legacy it represents. The many-layered confection is made from recipes passed down through generations of island bakers. To be a truly authentic Smith Island Cake, it must be made on the island.
The Smith Island Cake originated when island kitchens lacked electricity and modern ovens, making it difficult to bake thick cakes evenly. To solve this, island women baked thin layers and stacked them with homemade fudge icing. This dense icing acted as a seal, keeping the cake moist for days at sea, making it perfect for husbands and sons to take on long oystering trips across the Chesapeake Bay. Over time, the cake became a cherished staple at church dinners, celebrations, and holidays.
Mary Ada Marshall, a longtime local cake baker, says recipes were passed down by memory and hand. “I was eleven years old when I made my first cake,” she says. And she’s been baking ever since. There’s no “official” cake recipe, and each household has its own variation on cake batter, icing style, or flavor. ”What makes the cake special is the people and community it represents,” Marshall says. “The cakes are just a part of the way of life on the island… That’s just how it goes.”
Editor’s note: Chesapeake Bay Magazine dug deep into the origins of exactly who baked the first Smith Island cake; read about it here.
Aside from the handful of women who still bake to order from their home kitchens, Smith Island Bakery is the main purveyor of the cakes on the island. The bakery sits in Ewell, with a storefront and commercial kitchen housed in a historic 1930s building. Shoppers can arrive by boat, as the bakery sits right on the water.
Brian Murphy and his wife founded the Smith Island Baking Company in 2009, shortly after Maryland designated the Smith Island Cake as its official state dessert. They opened their bakery on Smith Island, but the business faced logistical challenges such as unreliable electricity and shipping difficulties. In 2016, the Murphys moved the Baking Company’s operations to the mainland in Crisfield to ensure more stable production.
In 2018, wanting to bring cake-making back to the island itself, local residents Kathey and Darren Jones bought the original bakery building as a separate business called Smith Island Bakery LLC in the Smith Island village of Ewell. “I had always dreamed of owning a bakery,” Kathey Jones says. “We wanted to support the island economy and preserve local tradition by baking and selling cakes directly from Smith Island.” Besides making delicious cakes, Jones says the Bakery has made efforts to buoy the community as a whole. “We try to support local whenever we can.” Jones says.
The Joneses have now made the decision to sell the property. It includes a fully equipped baking facility, storefront, walk-in refrigerator, and a dock where boaters can tie up. Also included in the sale is an adjacent residential lot, offering potential for on-site housing or staff accommodations. The bakery remains one of the few businesses on Smith Island that is both locally owned and fully operational.
Jones says the reason for selling is that they would like to be with their family. “My parents are getting older and we’ve got grandchildren and we’d like to spend more time with them”.
Many locals say they are sad to see the bakery owners go. Marshall says, “They were an important part of the island community.”
Jones hopes that will continue with a new owner. “We would love to see the business sell to someone who would keep the island tradition alive,” Jones says. “We proudly support our local island community, and that’s the only way it should be”.
The Smith Island Bakery property is listed for $354,900 and tours are available by appointment. Whether you’re a baker or just someone looking to preserve tradition, this island story is waiting for its next chapter.
