Thomas Cresap was Maryland's premier frontiersman. It can be easily argued that he was the leading figure of mid-18th century Western Maryland.

Cresap was born in Skipton, Yorkshire, England. The year of his birth is uncertain. At about age 15, he made the journey to America, settling in Maryland. In 1729 he moved from near Havre de Grace up the Susquehanna to what is now Wrightsville, Pennsylvania, where the governor of Maryland had granted him five hundred acres he called Pleasant Garden. The land was in dispute between the Calverts and the sons of William Penn, who contested their common boundary. Cresap, who took it upon himself to represent Maryland forcefully, killed encroaching livestock and shot at the posses sent to arrest him until he was finally overcome and jailed in Philadelphia, which he loudly declared to be "one of the Prettyest Towns in Maryland." Pennsylvanians called him "the Maryland Monster." When lawyers from both sides fought to an impasse, he was eventually released by order of the Crown.

Back in Maryland, he moved west into the Allegheny mountains, where he became a formidable Indian fighter, surveyor, trapper, trader, and land speculator. In 1739 Cresap settled in the Cumberland Valley, near the Antietam Creek, in the vicinity of today's Hagerstown. He moved farther west in 1742, settling along the Potomac River near today's Cumberland, in an area now called Old Town. His new home, which he named Skipton, served as his base for the rest of his long life.

Cresap became one of Frederick County's first justices and served in the Lower House of the Maryland Assembly. He was active in both the French and Indian War and the American Revolution. Along with Nemacolin, a Native American chief, he cleared a trail between the Potomac and Monongahela Rivers that would later serve as the route of the National Road. Cresap was instrumental in opening up western Maryland for settlement.

He was also a controversial figure. There are numerous tales, some true, some false, giving the impression of a disagreeable man. He was accused of the unprovoked killing of friendly Indians. He was accused of selling General Edward Braddock's British expedition rotten meat. Cresap's various disputes left a strong documentary trail for those interested in researching him.

Despite the dangers of the frontier, Cresap lived to a very old age, reportedly to be over a hundred. He was most likely 93 at the time of his death. In his youth he married Hannah Johnson. She died before 1774. They had at least five children. Cresap's sons worked closely with him and were well known in their own right, in particular Michael. There are over 11,000 reported descendants of Thomas Cresap. The Cresap Society is a leading genealogical association, preserving the memory of the man who is considered a pioneer, pathfinder, and patriot.

Bailey, Kenneth P. Thomas Cresap: Maryland Frontiersman. Boston: Christopher Publishing House, 1944.

Powell, Allan. Forgotten Heroes of the Maryland Frontier: Christopher Gist, Evan Shelby, Jr., Thomas Cresap. Baltimore: Gateway Press, 2001.