The islands of the Chesapeake are disappearing at an alarming rate. William Cronin's new history of the region — replete with rich black-and-white photographs by A. Aubrey Bodine — gives us reason to mourn their loss.

But history, for Poplar Island, seems to be coming to an end. Long the victim of erosion from rising seas, 40-mile-an-hour nor'eastern winds, and hurricane-level storm surges, all that remains of the island — once 1,500 acres — is four small spots of land that total about five acres. Disappearing Islands captures the history of Poplar and 40 or so other remaining islands in the bay — before they're gone for good.

In its history, Poplar Island was much more than a fur factory, according to retired oceanographer William B. Cronin, author of the new book The Disappearing Islands of the Chesapeake ( JHU Press , June 2005). It was the site of an Indian massacre in 1637, base camp for the invading British fleet during the War of 1812, and from 1931 through 1946, a getaway for presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman and many other prominent Democrats.

The result is an island-by-island chronicle of the bay that documents the islands' earliest native and non-native American settlers, some of their more colorful inhabitants throughout the years, and their current fate — many islands today are home only to plant- and wildlife. Illustrated largely by pictures taken by renowned photographer A. Aubrey Bodine, it is a delightful book for anyone who cherishes the Chesapeake.

Waiting for a Baltimore steamboat on Solomons Island, circa 1920 (Mariners' Museum). In the past several decades, Solomons has been home to the University of Maryland's Center for Environmental Studies, a site for World War II mine testing, a hospital burial ground for sailors with no known relatives, and a haven for nude sunbathers.