Dorchester County Historical Society

          Dorchester’s legal origin is not known, although it was in existence by February 16, 1668 when a writ was issued to the county sheriff by the Lord Proprietary.  The County was named for Sir Edward Sackville, the 4th Earl of Dorset, a family friend of the Calverts.  Dorset, as it was originally called, was a political entity by 1669.  The county was created from portions of Somerset and Talbot counties.  Note that Maryland was founded in 1634 and the Earl helped administer the Virginia settlement in 1631. An excellent source of information about the formation of Dorchester County, as well as the early settlers is The History of Dorchester County by Elias Jones. 

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