Assateague Island (ASS-ah-teeg), narrow barrier island, c.35 mi/56 km long, off Atlantic shore (Delmarva Peninsula) of SE Md. and E Va.; bordered to the N by Sinepuxent Bay and to the S by Chincoteague Bay. Famous for wild ponies that roam free until they are rounded up annually for auction. The isl. is inhabited only by Coast Guard crews. Visitors are limited to hunters and fishermen. Surf fishing off the isl. yields catches of channel bass, bluefish, kingfish, and sea trout. Said to have been explored in 1524 by Giovanni Verrazano, nearly a cent. before the first Eur. settlers arrived in N. Amer. The only connection with the mainland are bridges from Lower Sinepuxent Neck to Md. and from the S end of the isl. to Virginia. Until 1933, Assateague and Fenwick isls. were one. In that year, a hurricane breached the isl., producing what is now called the Ocean City inlet. Due to the breach and subsequent construction of jetties, a massive erosion of the shoreface has resulted. In March 1962, another storm ripped through the isl. and decimated the N end.
