Fish Ponds

My husband and I have a fish pond in our front yard, this got me to thinking about fish ponds in the 19th century. There are 13th century fish ponds in Hawaii but those are far older than what our 19th century ancestors would have used. Below is a description about putting in a fish pond taken from The Complete Angler:©1875

Doctor Lebault, the learned Frenchman, in his large discourse of Maison Rustique, gives this direction for
Of Fish-ponds. making of fish-ponds. I shall refer you to him, to read it at large : but I think I shall contract it, and yet make it
as useful.

He adviseth, that when you have drained the ground, and made the earth firm where the head of the pond must be, that you must then, in that place, drive in two or three rows of oak or elm piles, which should be scorched in the fire, or half burnt, before they be driven into the earth ; for being thus used, it preserves them much longer from rotting. And having done so, lay fagots or bavins of smaller wood betwixt them : and then earth betwixt and above them : and then, having first very well rammed them and the earth, use another pile in like manner as the first were : and note, that the second pile is to be of or about the height that you intend to make your sluice or floodgate, or the vent that you intend shall convey the overflowings of your pond in any flood that shall endanger the breaking of your pond-dam.

Then he advises, that you plant willows or owlers, about it, or both : and then cast in bavins, in some places not far from the side, and in the most sandy places, for fish both to spawn upon, and to defend them and the young fry from the many fish, and also from vermin, that lie at watch to destroy them, especially the spawn of the Carp and Tench, when 'tis left to the mercy of ducks or vermin.

He, and Dubravius, and all others advise that you make choice of such a place for your pond, that it may be refreshed with a little rill, or with rain water, running or falling into it; by which fish are more inclined both to breed, and are also refreshed and fed the better, and do prove to be of a much sweeter and more pleasant taste.

To which end it is observed, that such pools as be large and have most gravel, and shallows where fish may sport themselves, do afford fish of the purest taste. And note, that in all pools it is best for fish to have some retiring-place; as, namely, hollow banks, or shelves, or roots of trees, to keep them from danger, and, when they think fit, from the extreme heat of summer; as also from the extremity of cold in winter. And note, that if many trees be growing about your pond, the leaves thereof falling into the water, make it nauseous to the fish, and the fish to be so to the eater of it.

'Tis noted, that the Tench and Eel love mud : and the Carp loves gravelly ground, and in the hot months to feed on grass. You are to cleanse your pond, if you intend either profit or pleasure, once every three or four years, especially some ponds, and then let it lie dry six or twelve months, both to kill the waterweeds, as water-lilies, candocks, reate, and bulrushes, that breed there; and also that, as these die for want of water, so grass may grow in the pond's bottom, which Carps will eat greedily in all the hot months, if the pond be clean. The letting your pond dry, and sowing oats in the bottom is also good, for the fish feed the faster; and being sometimes let dry, you may observe what kind of fish either increases or thrives best in that water; for they differ much, both in their breeding and feeding.

Lebault also advises, that if your ponds be not very large and roomy, that you often feed your fish by throwing into them chippings of bread, curds, grains, or the entrails of chickens or of any fowl or beast that you kill to feed yourselves; for these afford fish a great relief. He says that frogs and ducks do much harm, and devour both the spawn and the young fry of all fish, especially of the Carp ; and I have, besides experience, many testimonies of it. But Lebault allows water-frogs to be good meat, especially in some months, if they be fat : but you are to note that he is a Frenchman ; and we English will hardly believe him, though we know frogs are usually eaten in his country : however he advises to destroy them and kingfishers out of your ponds. And he advises not to suffer much shooting at wildfowl; for that, he says, affrightens, and harms, and destroys the fish.
Note, that Carps and Tench thrive and breed best when no other fish is put with them into the same pond ; for all other fish devour their spawn, or at least the greatest part of it. And note, that clods of grass thrown into any pond feed any Carps in summer ; and that garden-earth and parsley thrown into a pond recovers and refreshes the sick fish. And note, that when you store your pond, you are to put into it two or three melters for one spawner, if you put them into a breeding-pond ; but if into a nurse-pond, or feeding-pond, in which they will not breed, then no care is to be taken whether there be most male or female Carps.

It is observed that the best ponds to breed Carps are those that be stony or sandy, and are warm, and free from wind; and that are not deep, but have willow-trees and grass on their sides, over which the water does sometimes flow : and note, that Carps do more usually breed in marl-pits, or pits that have clean clay bottoms ; or in new ponds, or ponds that lie dry a winter season, than in old ponds that be full of mud and weeds.*

Shad

Hi all,

Here's another tidbit I found while on a research trip. A newspaper article on Shad. I hadn't heard of this type of fish but here's what the article excerpt said. "The first shad of this season was caught on the 6th, in Savannah Back River, by Frank O. Louis. The run of shad this season, from present indications, will be large in spite of the Yankee blockade." Jan. 9, 1862 in the Daily Morning News.

If you'd like to read a bit more about this fish here's a link to Wikipedia. There is a pen & ink sketch of fishing for shad in the 19th century in South Carolina.

And another link to Google books from 1865 Introducing Shad to the Alabama River

Catfish

Hi all,

I stumbled on this interesting tidbit and thought I'd share it with all of you. June 23, 1859 a hundred and sixty pound catfish was caught in the Kansas River in Topeka.

This tiny bit of information is recored in the Collections of Kansas State Historical Society, Vol. 12. ©1912 I'm thinking this record may have gotten lost over the years. Current largest catfish records are much lower in weight.

Another citation is from The Topeka Tribune, June 23, 1859.

BIG FISH.-Two large catfish were captured in the Kaw this morning. The largest one weighing, net, 160 pounds. The smaller one 110 pounds. The mouth of the larger one measured, on the inside, eight by twelve inches. That fellow could carry a pretty good lunch in his head.

FYI Kansas and Kaw River are the same.

Fishes of the Perch Family

Fish was and still is a staple for many folks. When people were heading west to find fresh fish in a stream or a lake, was a welcomed food item. Today most of us purchase our fish in the grocery store and many come from fish farms. Back in the 19th Century that wasn't always the case. So, with that in mind, here are some tidbits on the Perch family of fish. Here's a link to Wikipedia with a bit about the 200 different fish that are a part of this family.

"Preopercle, toothed; opercle, spined; suborbitary bones, delicately toothed; tongue free. The dorsal fins are very powerful, the spines strong and sharp. The scaling moderately large, and with the posterior edge toothed. Swimming bladder very large. Number of vertebrae in the common species, forty-two."
Source: Fishes of the Perch Family ©1861

The Gradulated Perch shown below is Native to North America and "inhabits the rivers which flow from the Blue Mountains towards the Atlantic Ocean, and, with two others from the same country, is so similar to that of Europe, as to have been confounded with it, and to have assisted in the idea that the latter was also found in the New World. It indeed approaches very closely by the bands on the sides, and the red colour of the lower fins; and the distinctions pointed out by Cuvier are the stronger teeth upon the vomer, the more delicate indentations of the preopercle, and the more irregular form of the cranium."
Source: Fishes of the Perch Family ©1861

Below are some lists of various fish with as much or more than you need information about the various fish. The description is helpful if you're trying to write about a fish your characters caught and you've never caught one yourself. Enjoy!

Yellow Perch; American Perch; Ringed Perch.
Back dark olivaceous; sides golden yellow; belly pale; sides with 6 or 8 broad dark bars, which extend from the back to below the axis of the body; lower fins largely red or orange; upper fins olivaceous; usually no distinct black spot on anterior or posterior part of spinous dorsal. Back highest at origin of spinous dorsal, which is more or less behind insertion of pectoral; profile convex from dorsal to occiput, thence concave anteriorly, the snout projecting. Mouth somewhat oblique, maxillary reaching opposite middle of orbit. Cheeks closely scaled throughout, the scales imbricated; opercular striae and rugosities on top of head well marked. Pseudobranchia3 quite small. Gill-rakers stout, shortish. Head 3£ in length; depth 3£. D. XIII-I, 14; A. II, 7; scales 555-17. Fresh waters of the Eastern United States; chiefly northward and eastward; abundant.
Source: Synopsis of the Fishes of North America ©1883

FYI: I read where some types of bass are a part of the perch family but it seems that in America the type we have here (I could be wrong) are of the Sunfish family and the Sea bass family. So, I'd be careful if my character was fishing for bass and not refer to it as being of the perch family.

Kinds of Fish off Puget Sound and other Pacific Coast regions

Kinds of Fish.—The varieties of fish most valuable in the commerce and industry of the Atlantic are caught also in the waters of our coast. The cod, herring, mackerel, halibut, flounder, sardine, anchovy, and turbot are found in both oceans. The report of the fish commissioners of California, for I880, gives the number of species of fish then known in the waters at 280, 25 of which are fresh, and the remainder salt-water fish. Thirtyfour additional species, including I1 river fish, are found in Oregon and Washington. ' These are all indigenous species. As no thorough search has been made between Tomales Bay and the mouth of the Columbia, it is almost certain that other varieties will be discovered from year to year. Of the 21 flat-fishes on the coast, I9 are found on the shores or bays of California.
Our coast has different fish districts, well defined in geographical limits, and different in many of their occupants. One extends from Point Conception northward to Monterey ; the second, from Monterey to Puget Sound, and the third from that point onward toward the Arctic. The bay of Monterey is the middle ground, where fishes from north and south meet It has about I30 species, and San Francisco harbor has the same number. Santa Barbara has but 95 species, as the rock-cod and flounder do not go so far south. In Puget Sound there are 90 species, all of which belong to the northern varieties. In San Francisco Bay, and its tributary rivers, there are taken annually about 4,000 tons of fish.
The large-eyed flounder (Hippaglossoides fordani) is plentiful in our fishmarkets all the year round. Professor JORDAN estimates the catch of this fish by Chinamen, in the single harbor of Monterey, at 500 pounds per day. Of the chiridae, the painted sea-trout (C/zirus pic us) is common in our northem latitudes, and is found occasionally in the San Francisco market. The c/zz'ru.r guttatus, a species of sea-trout common in the'bays of San Francisco and Monterey, is plentiful in the markets the year round.
The cod-fish proper does not belong to the fauna of California. Dr. BEAN, who recently investigated the fish systems of the Alaskan waters, is of opinion that the cod-fish of Alaska is identical with the Gadus morr/ma, or true cod-fish. The entire quantity of fresh cod brought to San Francisco, packed in ice, does not exceed 300 tons, in the season of 3 months. The green cod, is noted as one of the most rapacious of fishes, coming in this characteristic into close competition with the shark. Lurking among the rocks, it lies in wait for rock-fish, and is often captured on the same hook with the fish at which it bites. It is valuable as a food fish and sometimes attains a weight of 50 or 60 pounds.
Red rock-cod sometimes weigh 25 pounds, and blue rock-fish 50 pounds. These are of extreme size. The barracuda season lasts from the beginning of March to _Iune. In shape and habit this fish strongly resembles the fresh-water pike, being long and slim and exceedingly voracious. It feeds on small fish, such as smelt and herring, and is found in schools among the kelp. It is caught with trawl-lines near Santa Cruz and 1\Ionterey. The barracuda of the Atlantic Ocean is considered unfit for food, while its Pacific relative is esteemed one of the most delicate of table fish. Large quantities are caught in San Diego Harbor. The hook is baited with a white or red rag, at which the fish bites greedily. It is abundant in summer at a distance of 3 or 4 miles from the heads of San Francisco Harbor, and thence southward. In other seasons the young are sometimes taken in seines. The largest size is about 12 pounds.
Of the 27 known species of rock-cod, all except 2 are to be found in the harbor of Monterey. The one most common in the Bay of San Francisco, the wharf rock-fish (Seba.rtic/it/zys auriculatus), the only kind found in shallow bays, sometimes attains a weight of 3 pounds. Those caught by hook and line, from wharf or shore, average about half a pound. The largest of all the species is the large, red rock-fish (Seéastzk/It/zy.r ruber), exceeding in some instances a weight of 12 pounds. Large quantities of the dark greenish rock-fish (Afro:/z're1z.r), taken by Chinamen at the Santa Barbara Islands, are salted, dried, and sent to China. It is the opinion of many fishermen that the Chinamen are rapidly reducing the Californian supply of food fish. Already white fishermen have to go outside the heads for fish which but a few years ago were plentiful in San Francisco Bay. The long flats near the Oakland and Alameda shores are often swept by Asiatic fishermen, who operate with both the seine and stationary net. Inside of Cape Scott, the north-west extremity of Vancouver Island, there is an extensive bank, where rock-cod are taken in immense quantity, and of the largest size. On the shore, near to this bank, a Chinese colony is engaged in the systematic prosecution of the business. In the vicinity of Burrard Inlet, a productive fishing-ground, immense quantities of smelt, an excellent and favorite table fish, are dried, packed, and shipped by Chinese fisherman to their fellow-Mongols in Victoria and in San Francisco. One redeeming feature in the presence of the yellow fishermen in our community is, that they eat up young shark, and esteem as a delicacy the fin of the larger species in a raw or cooked state, or in soup, when it can be spared from drying purposes.
The greater bulk of the fish sent from Tomales and Monterey bays to San Francisco are black bass, black rock-cod, and other species of the sco/;/>mzz'a’w. On account of their dark color they are very slow of sale, and sometimes can not find purchasers, even at a cent a pound. Rock-fish are omnivorous, with a preference for their smaller kindred. They spawn early in the spring. The pompino is found along the entire Pacific Coast. It is a small fish, juicy and fat, and readily brings 25 to 50 cents, selling occasionally as high as $1.50 per pound.
Of the carangida, the horse mackerel (T me/zuras saurus) is taken in large quantity off this coast, and salted for bait. The pilot-fish also belongs to this subdivision of the scombridaa, or old mackerel family. Of the true scombridae, the Spanish mackerel occurs from Monterey southward, and is occasionally found in the San Francisco markets. The largest specimen is I4 inches long. The bonito, or skip-jack, taken in great quantity ofl" Santa Barbara and San Diego, has a coarse, unwholesome meat when eaten fresh, but when salted and dried, it sells for twenty-five cents a pound. Its average weight is about I2 pounds. The albicore bites greedily at a white rag, and affords excellent sport in the bay of Monterey, being caught by trawllines.
Of the sciaenidx, the sea-bass, and the 2 species of so-called kingfish (Geizyonenzus lineatus and Scrip/zus politus), are highly esteemed as table fish. The 2 latter descriptions are seldom more than IO inches in length, of delicate flavor, and of course are different from the king-fish previously mentioned. The white sea-bass is abundant, and instances are not uncommon in our markets of fish weighing 50 or 60 pounds. The sucker bass is found on sandy shores south of Santa Barbara, and the roncador, of about 3 pounds weight, has the same range. Many varieties of the perch family are used only for bait, but the blue-fish, moon-fish, rockbass, johnny Verde, and kelp salmon, all of which belong to this family, rank high as pan-fish. The Jew-fish, or black sea-bass, is palatable, and reaches a weight of 500 pounds. All the species of perch range southward from the Islands of Santa Barbara. Mullet, common in the harbor of San Diego, does not exceed a length of I 5 inches. The flying-fish, frequently seen off the southern part of our coast from Santa Barbara to Central America, reaches a weight of ‘a pound and a half or more, and is excellent for the table. '
Of the apodes, or fishes without ventral fins, the conger eel is plentiful among the rocks near the tide mark of San Diego harbor. Though very pugnacious, it is sometimes taken by hand. Its extreme weight is about 20 pounds. Its skin is said to be poisonous, but the flesh resembles that of the fresh-water eel.
The sting-ray, or stingaree, which is common along the coast, is very destructive to oysters, crustacea, and fish. The Chinese occasionally use it, when dried, as a food fish. It sometimes attains a weight of 75 pounds. The sea vampire, or devil-fish, occurs on our coast, and is not rare in the Mexican waters. The largest known specimens measure 15 to 20 feet in width. The Raia binaculata is common in our local markets, and sells as a food fish chiefly to the French. The largest of the rays is the Raia Coaperi, which sometimes attains a length of 5 or 6 feet.
Salrnon Fam1ly.—In the report of W. G. MORRIS, on the resources of Alaska Territory, it is stated that the yield of salmon is almost beyond belief. Sixty thousand Indians and several thousand Aleuts and Eskimos depend mainly on dried salmon for their winter sustenance. During the running season in the vicinity of Klawock, the marine waters are actually blaek_ with them. They are caught with seines, and are of larger size than the Columbia River salmon. Those taken at Cook's inlet average 60 pounds, and not unfrequently run up to double that weight. Two of the largest fill a barrel. In Alaska, as in British Columbia, the fish can be obtained in vast quantity at the expense of native labor, and, after paying for salt or vinegar, barrels, and freight, return a good profit when shipped to Australian or European markets. The salmon being mainly a river fish, will be mentioned again in the next chapter. The salmon-trout is abundant in Puget Sound, where it is taken by seine-fishing up to a weight of 3 pounds. The surf-smelt, which also belongs to the salmonidze, is very plentiful in the same neighborhood.
The oolikon (the name is also spelled “oolahan,” and “eulachon"), or candlefish, a delicious table fish when taken in its best condition, is not ‘abundant south of latitude 49°. After being smoked and dried, it should be prepared for table by the steaming or broiling process, and is then equal to the finest qualities of salt fish. It is pickled and shipped to San Francisco, where it finds a ready sale. W’hen canned it is sold as Columbia River sardine, or as Spanish mackerel. Its size never exceeds 12 inches, and it is most abundant in the Columbia, Fraser, and Nass rivers. The fish is very juicy and fat, and contains an oil said to be superior to codliver oil for medicinal purposes. Among the Alaskan'natives it is used by the Indians as a substitute for candles, burning with a clear, bright flame when lighted and set up endwise. On the Nass River, where the oolikon is most abundant, 10,000 gallons of oil made from it annually are sold to the Indians for $1 a gallon.
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The Herring Family.-Among the herring family (C'lupez'da>), the sardine is taken in the bays of our coast during the greater part of the year. It is caught from the wharves of San Francisco and San Diego with line and hook, and resembles the fish of that name found in the waters of Europe, where, the young, preserved in oil, are esteemed as a table delicacy; though the canned fish usually sold here, under the name of sardine, is nearly always something else. No attempt has yet been made to utilize for canning purposes on our coast the true sardine, which abounds in the waters of California. The anchovy is almost equally plentiful here; but it is found chiefly in sheltered bays, and is difficult to catch. From 25 to 40 tons of anchovies are caught in the harbor of San Francisco alone, during the season, which lasts from June to August. These are sold to the trade at a cent a pound, and retail at about 3 cents, forming the bulk of what are here preserved in oil and passed off on the public as sardines, many of them under French labels. Some wholesale and retail grocers import directly from France, and sell no other kind, but this is rather the exception than the rule.
San Francisco obtains her supply of herrings mainly from the waters of her own bay. Their poor condition is caused by the fact that they only enter the harbor to spawn, and the later the season the worse they are. In the \vaters of Puget Sound they are caught in much better condition. Their season commences in California in October, and lasts 4 months. Great schools enter San Francisco Bay every winter, resorting sometimes to the mudflats and shallows, and not unfrequently keeping in deep water, beyond the reach of fishermen. As a rule they are caught at night. The shoal water of Richardson's Bay is a favorite herring-ground. At the beginning of the season the price is often as low as 50 cents, but towards the close often rises to $4 or $5 per cental. Their average weight is about a fifth of a pound. On the Alameda shore seals swarm, and make hearty meals by picking the fish out of the nets, the meshes of which are torn in a most exasperating manner during the process. A strip of shoal off Kershaw’s Island, opposite to Saucelito, is sometimes a good fishing-ground for herring. When the nets are cast, men have to be employed keeping off the seals, which often growl in huge disgust at their futile endeavors to get within swallowing reach of the captive fish. The best grounds for herring fishing in the Bay of San Francisco are in its northern and north-eastern portions. The herring move in shoals, and run against the tide. \/Vhen they meet the nets they experience no difficulty in running their heads through the meshes, but owing to the peculiar shape of the fish, they can get no further. Retreat is of course impossible. After a time, the net is slowly drawn in, and one haul is sometimes enough to load a boat. The herring are sold at the city markets for fresh consumption, or at the wharves to persons engaged in salting, drying, and smoking them. Soon after the close of the season, the herring fisher usually starts for the salmon fishing-grounds of the Sacramento, where he remains for 3 or 4 months.
The cost of a herring gill net is over $100, and 40 per cent. of the price is represented by the duty. A good one will last 3 summers with careful usage and timely repairs, and serves also for smelt fishing. Besides the stationary net, the equipment of a boat for the whole season includes a seine, or casting net, 60 fathoms long, with very small meshes, which will catch anything from a halibut 5 feet long to a shrimp or a tomcod; also a seabass or sturgeon net 300 fathoms long, and 20 feet deep, with a mesh 8 inches square. An entire bay fishing outfit costs from $500 to $1,000; the boat alone, if well built and rigged, being worth $350. Forty of these boats may be seen any afternoon at the Vallejo-st.reet wharf. Their rig consists of a short slanting mast, and a slender boom (always longer than the boat itself), from which is bent an immense spread of lateen sail. Occasionally the boats carry a jib somewhat bigger than a table napkin. Each boat is manned by two or three men. On arriving at the fishing-ground, the net is paid out from the stern of the boat. This operation, called “shooting the net,” lasts only a few. minutes. After several hours, the catch is hauled in, and a single haul is sometimes sufficient for one boat-load.
Source: Commerce and Industries of the Pacific Coast of North America ©1882

Fishing Dory

The first time I saw a dory I was amazed. Dad brought home this fishing dory that had a hole in the bottom and two bows. He explained that the outboard motor went inside the hole. Well, how can that be? Wouldn't a hole that big cause the boat to sink? And why two bows? The short answer is it didn't. However the 19th Century Dories were powered by men with oars. Below is an illustration of a fifteen foot dory as well as a description of it from a "Report on the Ship building industry of the United States." ©1884
These dories are often painted in works of art from this time period, as in Winslow Homer's The Fog Warning 1882.

A variety'of other boats are built along the New England coast for fishing, some to go with vessels, others for alongshore use, primarily intended for rowing, but often having also some sort of a small fore-and-aft sail, with a pole for a mast that can be unshipped and taken down readily. The shore boats are for lobstering and fishing with hand-lines, seining, etc. They are regularly framed keel boats, usually open, and are sometimes clinker built and sometimes sharp at both ends. The seine boats are always sharp at both ends; they are rather full on the floor amidships, are well modeled at the ends, and are given a good sheer. On the coast of Maine some of the shore boats have a little caddy forward, in which is placed a stove, to keep the men warm in winter, and also to prevent the lobsters from freezing until they can be brought to shore and sent to market. The general model of the open boat is a legacy from early times. It came into existence at a very early period, owing to the exigencies of the peculiar calling in which it is employed, which has compelled the shore fishermen to adopt a boat suited to flat beaches and having the properties of light draught, buoyancy, stability, and stowage capacity for fishing apparatus and fish. The object of building the boats with sharp ends is to e nable fishermen to launch and land through the surf with facility and to handle the boat in rough water with safety. The New England fishermen of to day have been accustomed to this general model from childhood, and they pin their faith to it with the utmost tenacity. It is the model which forms the basis of the admirable boats used in the United States life-saving service. The crews of the life stations have been largely recruited from the sea-coast fishermen, and the bureau at Washington gives them the model they know so well and can handle with such remarkable skill.

Aquariums

I wonder if you've thought much about an Aquarium in your historical novel. If not, here are some tidbits from The Detroit Free Press ©1881 about Aquariums

AQUARIUMS.
FOR THE SITTING-ROOM.
The fresh-water aquarium, or drawing-room fish pond, is a pleasing and interesting ornament for a city or suburban town. It is cheaply and easily made, and requires but little care. Comparatively tew persons can adorn their homes with costly pictures and statues, but almost anyone with a love of nature and art can have an aquarium, fulfilling in miniature realities the glowing and poetic water legends of Northern and Oriental climes. It is the expression of the cultured taste, more than the embellishment of wealth, that makes a charming home.
A tank for a fresh-water aquarium may be constructed of four plates of glass, with a large piece of slate, marble or metal for the bottom; or the tank may be made wholly of metal and set like a large sink in a bay or oriel window; or one may be constructed of a seamless bowl or tub, either earthen or wooden; if the latter, all seams (providing a seamless one cannot be obtained) must be made water-tight by the use of a cement manufactured for the purpose, and sold as "aquarium cement." No lead or paint must be where the water can touch it. The placing of this bowl will call into use your artistic fancies; it may be surrounded upon a stand with earth and rocks, among which may be planted the drooping vines of the house plants and others that may suggest themselves, though not surrounded with plants so thickly as to darken the pool, for fish enjoy a little sunlight—but do not broil them.

SELECTION OF WATER PLANTS.
These can be procured from brooks and ponds near at hand. A good way to plant them is to tie a small pebble to the roots or base of stems and sink them below the surface of the bed. The arrangement of the plants should be made with regard to the best effect, the smallest plants being placed in front and the tallest in the center or at the back of the tank.

A tank of water-plants can be made quite as ornamental as a fernery, while the fish, snails and mussels prove very attractive to all beholders, old as well as young.

Among the best varieties of water-plants are: Arrowhead, a very common plant in brooks and creeks, which has white flowers with golden centers and arrowhead-shaped leaves; eel-grass is a very popular plant for aquaria, as its habitat is in slow-moving waters; waternymph, a slender, thread-like plant, with knot-like lobes ; water-feather, a lovely little plant, a gem for the aquarium; water-cress, water-millfoil. After all the plants are arranged, throw in a few lemna minor, or duckweeds, which are tiny, stemless, floating plants that harbor minute insects that are delicacies for the fish.

The plants should be planted in good soil, in saucers or similarly low dishes, then procure some coarse gravel, sand, fine sand, white gravel or pebble stones, a few common rough stones, and three or four larger ones, with which to construct a miniature arch, placing the closed ends of .the arch toward the ends of the tank, in order that the fish may not hide themselves beneath, as they will be sure to do. Place a layer of the coarse sand over the bottom, then the saucers containing the plants upon the sand; construct the arch firmly by the use of a little cement, and so arrange the balance of material that when finished the bottom will be one of apparent sand and gravel, with mounds, ridges, etc. A few small shells of the most ordinary kind will add to its picturesqueness.
The tank is now ready for the water. Fill about one-quarter full and let it stand for a day, then dip out a part of the water and replace with fresh. This treatment must be continued from day to day until the water in the tank shall be clear and clean; ordinary soft water—brook, spring or pure cistern—required. Fill the tank within about two inches of the top, and it is ready for the fish. The smaller they are the larger the number that may be put together.

SUITABLE FISH FOR WATER LIFE.
After the plants and rocks are arranged the former must have time to become accustomed to their new home before the fish are put in. A fortnight is none too long for the aquarium to remain tenantless. If a green film overspreads the glass it shows there are too many plants for the water, and they have had too much light, It is a good plan to paste thin green paper on all sides of the glass up to the water-line, excepting in front, even when the fish are put in, because it subdues the light, and gives the fish a more natural home, and makes it more healthful.
In selecting fishes for the aquarium, gold and silver fish will of course have the first choice, and after that the minnows. The beauty of these fish, their habits and the management they require are too well known for an extended notice in a necessarily brief article. The perch is a suitable fish for a fresh water aquarium, for a reason that may not be well known. It is one of the few fishes that may be trained, and made to show its docility by taking food from the fingers. The pike, which is the shark of fresh water, may be put into an aquarium with gold fish and perch, but not with other fishes. Even with the gold fish it is not fully to be trusted, as when hungry it has been known to eat its own species.

The trout is a handsome fish, with its crimson, spotted sides, but, like the pike, it must be well fed and kept away from smaller fishes. The eel may be used with safety—a small one, and frogs may be kept with larger fish.
The merot may also be added to the happy family, notwithstanding the antipathy against it on account of its resemblance to the lizard; it is perfectly harmless. During the breeding season it exhibits a variety of shining colors—orange, olive, green, with a mottling of brown and scarlet. The water spider is a curious insect, and, if possible, should be secured for the aquarium. It spends the greater part of its time beneath the water, coming to the surface to seize its prey, and to obtain a fresh supply of air for its sub-aquatic home. Reclining figures of plaster may be added, and if the tank be a large one, an artificial island of stones, mosses and ferns, with a siphon fountain, may be in the middle.

Feed your fish all the worms, meat or fish spawn that they will eat. Take great care to take all that they do not eat out of the aquarium; any decayed meat or vegetables in water have the same smell to fish that it has to you in the air. Two snails added will act as scavengers.

Do not handle the fish, but take them out with a net made of mosquito netting. An aquarium properly stocked and managed is hardly any trouble, and it affords a great deal of pleasure.

Never feed the fish crackers or other food, for it fills their gills and suffocates them. With the above hints, nearly every one can make a home for the fish and keep them, if they do not neglect them, for many years.
The best position for an aquarium is in a window looking towards the east, where it will not have more than two hours of the morning sun. If such a location cannot be given, put it in a southern window, but shade from the noonday sun. A western or northern aspect is never desirable for an aquarium. The temperature is also of importance. It should range from 45 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit. If the water becomes too warm the fish will die. If it freezes, the tank may burst.

CARE OF GOLD AND SILVER FISH.
Take a bell glass that will hold about two gallons of water , and set it into a box two feet long, twelve inches wide, and eight or ten inches high, or of any dimensions desired. Fill the box with a mixture of silver sand, leaf mold and earth, placing your inverted glass in the center of the box; around this place ferns and lycopodium; cover the box with glass, so that it will be nearly air-tight, to retain the moisture. The plants will require water about once a month; in the bell glass make a thick bed of sand, pebbles and small shells, and fill with perfectly pure water, and two gold fish or minnows, and a few aquatic plants, as they, under the action of the light, consume the carbonic acid gas given forth by the fish, and restore to the water the oxygen necessary to the maintenance of life. Snails are useful also to act as'scavengers to consume the vegetable matter thrown off by the plants, and render it unnecessary to change the water so frequently, which would otherwise become greenish and untransparent. A change once a week will keep the fish in good health ; but an aquarium fairly established with a proper proportion of plants and fish will preserve its healthfulness without change of water, more than to fill it upas the water evaporates. A still more desirable plan is to invert the bell glass in a thick block of wood, in any way that will hold it firmly; the block may be planted, and decorated according to taste, and may be made very ornamental; then for "stocking" follow the directions given above.

For a marine aquarium the "sea coast" affords many a "treasure trove," the sea anemones, those strange and fascinating existences, half fish and half blossom, may be found on the coast of Maine. Each shore has its specialty. The bay abounds in sea weeds of a lovely tint. while the beaches are rich in shells—all of which contribute to make an aquarium an object of interest and source of enjoyment. They should be kept in a cool place—never exposed to a burning sun or the heat of a fire. Too many should never be crowded into one glass. A few branches of box should be kept in the globe for them to rub against, which should be changed once a week. Many persons fancy that gold and silver fish need no food. It is true that they will subsist for a long time with nothing but-water when it is pure and frequently changed. They are best pleased with such diet as bread or biscuit; but these should be given sparingly, lest, turning sour, they corrupt the water. They will also feed on the aquatic plant called lemna, or duckweed, and also on small fry. Fine gravel should be strewed at the bottom of the vessel that contains the fish; and they should be fed on bread and gentles, and have their water frequently changed.
You can easily tell when a fish is falling off in his health by observing him frequently coming up to the surface of the water for air. This shows he has not sufficient power in his gills to extract the air from the water. He also looks dull, and his motions are languid; a hazy or cobwebby appearance likewise seems to envelop his body, and perhaps some of the scales will drop off. When a fish goes into this unhealthy state, he should be immediately removed from the others, who should have fresh water given them several days in succession. The best remedy for diseased fish is to put them into a pond for a few weeks; and it is especially necessary for female fish, which, if not so treated, frequently die for want of spawning. A fish is sometimes saved by being placed in a little artificial dam, made from some running stream in a garden, for two or three days; but their diseases are at all times very difficult to remedy. The best way is to prevent them by precautionary measures—plenty of room and pure water.

Catfish Part 2

I decided to include this additional tidbit regarding the catfish. Hopefully you'll find this useful for your novels or general knowledge.

Here's a list of the various kinds of catfish and some descriptions about them.

The Common Catfish

The Brown Catfish
Description. Head flattened, with a granular surface above; its length compared to the total length, is as one to four and a half. The upper jaw slightly the longest. Lateral line slightly concave under the dorsal fin, and then straight. Breadth of the head slightly less than its length. Eyes small, two-tenths of an inch in diameter, and far apart. Nostrils double; the posterior pair half an inch apart, patent, oval, with an erectile cirrus on their anterior margins ; the anterior pair subtubular, and near the edge of the jaws. A long cirrus, stout and fleshy at its base, at each angle of the jaws, and an inch and a half long. A pair of slender cirri 0-6 long, on the summit of the head; four others under the lower jaw, arranged in a curved line an inch in extent; the internal pair shortest, and all slender. Humeral bone with a blunt spine over the pectoral, and a short obtuse angular projection beneath. Mouth very ample and dilatable. A band of small recurved teeth in each jaw, broadest in the centre, and diminishing to a point on the sides. Vomer and palatines smooth. Two rounded patches of minute recurved teeth in the upper pharyngeals; opposite to them, a few scattering minute teeth.
The dorsal fin commences half an inch posterior to a point vertical to the origin of the peetorals, subquadrate, and a little more than an inch high. Its first ray is a robust spine, slightly serrated on its posterior margin, and much shorter than the remaining rays. Adipose fin rounded, and opposite the termination of the anal fin. Pectorals placed low down, and in advance of the posterior angle of the opercle; its spine stout and pointed, with its anterior and posterior margins serrated, and its upper and under surfaces corrugated: the spine is shorter than the four following rays. Ventrals somewhat pointed, and originate at a point three-tenths of an inch behind the end of the first dorsal. Anal fin with seventeen rays, an inch and a half long, and six-tenths of an inch high. Caudal fin slightly but distinctly emarginate ; the accessory rays indistinct. Vent with a double orifice.
Color. A uniform dusky brown above, approaching to black ; beneath bluish white. Fins and cirri black ; the former tinged with red.

The Black Catfish
Characteristics. Black. Adipose dorsal long and slender; the rays of the fins passing beyond the membrane. Caudal emarginate, ro'und, with numerous accessory rays. Length four to eight inches.
Description. Surface smooth and sealeless. Lateral line distinct, nearly straight, slightly convex under the dorsal fin. Head depressed, sloping. The barbels, in number and arrangement, resemble those of the preceding species. Lips fleshy, with minute punctures. Teeth in the jaws minute, long, conical and crowded. Tongue smooth. Humeral bone with a long concealed spine above the pectoral, and a short blunt rudimentary process directed downward at the upper angle of the branchial aperture.
The dorsal fin higher than long, arising midway between the pectorals and ventrals; the first ray an acute triangular spine ; its anterior surfaces marked with oblique rugze or wrinkles ; its anterior edge smooth; a small accessory bone at its anterior base; six soft rays, the first and second longest. The adipose dorsal as far from the last rays of the first dorsal, as the anterior ray of that fin is from the end of the snout; long and slender, rounded, and laciniate at the tips. The pectoral fins nearly on the plane of the abdomen, and anterior to the upper angle of the branchial aperture, containing one spinous and seven branched rays: the spinous ray robust, triangular, slightly curved, with its anterior edge roughened, and its sides channelled as in the spine of the first dorsal; a small filamentous ray is connected with it, its posterior edges with decurved spines; the second, third and fourth rays somewhat longer than the spines. Ventrals small and feeble, pointed, their tips scarcely reaching the third anal ray; the third and fourth rays longest. Anal fin long; the first four successively longer, when they become subequal to the last four or five rays, when they gradually diminish in length. Caudal slightly emarginate, rounded at the tips.
Color. Deep black, occasionally blackish brown above and on the sides ; ashen grey beneath.

The Blue Catfish of Ohio and the Lakes.

The Yellow Catfish

The Channel Catfish

The Mud Catfish, recognized by the scarified and clouded appearance of its skin.

The small Black Bullhead of the northern streams and lakes.

Young Catfish, with the rudiments of an adipose fin.
Source: Reptiles & Amphibia ©1842

Bull-head. Black Catfish. Horned Pout. Small Catfish. Schuylkill Cat,
Adipose fin free posteriorly; head flat, wedge shaped; skin thick; branchiostegals, eight to eleven; dorsal fin higher than long, with six branched rays; lateral line incomplete; caudal fin truncate; color varies from nearly black to yellowish; anal fin about twenty-one rays. Length, 18 inches.
"This fine species is not frequently met with, and only in the rivers, where occasionally specimens are captured, associated with the following common species."

Long-jawed Cat. Common Catfish.
Lower jaw projects beyond the upper; head longer than broad and narrowed in front; profile steep and convex; color dark reddish or blackish; size of foregoing.
This is the most abundant species of the catfish found in the State. It is a lover of quiet waters, with a deep deposit of mud on the bottom of the stream. It would not be a misnomer to designate it as the ' mud ' catfish. They afford moderate sport to the angler, and, except in July and August, are a fair article of food. They are less abundant in the smaller creeks of the northern part of the State."
A. natalis, Le S., var. cupreus, Jord. (Silurus lividus, Raf.-, &c.) Yellow Cat. Chubby Cat.
Body stout, with large head; upper jaw projecting; color yellowish brown. This may possibly occur in the valley of the Delaware, but it is difficult to distinguish species so variable.

White Catfish. Channel Cat of the Potomac.
Body slender, compressed; head conical; branchiostegals eight to nine; six rays in dorsal fin; caudal deeply forked; mouth rather narrow, upper jaw longer; rays of anal fin about twentyone; pale olive bluish above and silvery below. Length, I8 inches.
Source: New Jersey State Documents ©1890

CATFISH
We do not now appreciate our several varieties of catfish. But coming generations will do so. The- fish is valuable for food. Some of the smaller varieties, living in running waters, being as delicate as any of our native fish. As is known to all our people, the catfish is extremely hardy and thrives in all our waters. To propagate him, it is only necessary to put the proper variety in waters suited to him, and then give such waters reasonable protection. The Mississippi river and its tributaries is the home of the catfish. The largest catfish of which I have authentic information, weighed 196 pounds, and was caught in the Mississippi, near St. Louis. My authority is M. B. Curtis, the oldest fish dealer of St. Louis. The largest catfish which came under my personal observation was caught in the Mississippi river, near St. Louis, in 1879, and was presented to Professor Spencer F. Baird, for the National Museum, by the Missouri Fish Commission. It weighed 150 pounds, and, when examined, proved to be an undescribed species. It has been named by Professors Jordan and Gilbert, lctal-ur'us pondero-sus—Bean—Great catfish. They think this variety of catfish attains a larger size than any other.
There are small varieties which never exceed two pounds in weight, and probably much less. The Missourian who visits the magnificent Fairmount Park of Philadelphia, is amused to read the signs on the little resturants by the roadside, “catfish and waffles," showing the dish to be a delicacy in the estimation of the inhabitants of the Quaker City. Catfish spawn in spring and summer. The eggs are deposited in lumps or masses, varying in size from a small marble to a hen’s egg. The spawn and young fry are carefully guarded by the parent fish until able to care for themselves. From experiments made by Col. Marshall McDonald, Assistant U. S. Fish Commissioner, at '1 Commissioner for Virginia, he concludes that the male acts as guar. . This care by the parent, and the formidable spines, or stickers, with which the catfish is armed. account for his ability to hold his own in our depleted waters. It is a veritable eXemplification of the “survival of the fittest.”
Source: Appendix to the House and Senate Journals ©1885

Catfish

Below are tidbits and recipes about the Catfish. It was a staple for many people and still is in some parts today.

A Report from the Fishing and Game Commissioners mentioned:
CATFISH.
A number of men engaged in cleaning out the Morris Canal impounded several thousand catfish, and these were secured by one of the wardens and placed in different waters in Sussex county.
In the Western States the channel catfish is much sought after, both for sport and the food it affords, its flesh being white, firm and sweet. The addition of this fish to the food-fish of the Delaware and other large bodies of water in this State would be very desirable, and consequently the Commission has made arrangements for securing a supply in the near future. A number of channel catfish have already been brought to the State, and have been placed in one of the reservoirs of the Passaic Water Company, in Paterson, where they are amply protected, and from whence it is hoped their progeny will be distributed to other parts of the State, although the Commission also expects to distribute a large number directly from the great lakes.
©1895

MR. THURMAN S CATFISH.
Once upon a time, when crowded about his presidential aspirations, Mr. Thurman replied: "I really have no ambition in that direction." A look of incredulity on erery face waithe only response. The judge took in these looks and related a little story. Said he: "One summer I was at the Oakland House, Maryland, spending a little vacation np In the cool mountain resion. We got to telling Ashing stories. I related something of my own experience when I was present and saw caught a catfish weighing ninety pounds. When 1 told the weight tbeie was a general laugb, and I was humorously awarded the prize for telling fish stories. I quietij remarked to my incredulous friends that I hoped soon to convince them of the correctness of my story, that la Western waters there were cattish of ninety pounds weight. When I returned to Columbus, I went to the leading restaurateur and instructed him to procure roe the largest catfish that could possiolv be secured. He reported in a few days that he had one. I walked over aud found an excellent specimen, weighing 75 pounds. I hid him boxed and carefully packed in ice, ami shipped him to my disbelieving friends at the Oakland. From the restaurateur I got all the recipes I could for catfish chowder, catfish steaks, stuffed catfish, roast, etc., and sent them on by mail. 1 telegraphed as follows: 'Skin your fish before you cook him,' a catfish's skin being so rank as to spoil the flesh when the fish is cooked with it on.' They got my telegram and were puzzled. When the box atrived, dripping from the melting ice, tbey were more puzzled. The letter, which arrived bv tbe same train as the fish, explained all They had a fine feast, and at it formally organized with a president and secretary, and passed tbe following resoluiion. which was sent me: '"Resolved, That the truth of Allen fi. Thurtnuu's statements should never be questionel; that his fish stories are alwavs absolutely true, especially his catfish stories." —Cleveland Press.
Source: Fishing Scraps ©1883

Shipping Tidbits:
The fish are then taken out and dressed and barreled for shipment. The dressing consists in cutting off the head, removing the viscera, and skinning the fish, after which it is washed, and then barreled with ice for shipment. The principal shipments are made to Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Colorado, and New Mexico.
Source: Congressional Serial Set ©1899

DO CATFISH AND EELS INTERBREED:
There is a party here who has made the remarkable statement that catfish and eels are one and the same species, one being male, the other female. It seems so ridiculous to me that I took the chances of denying it, and now I want some definite information. He says that neither catfish or eels will breed by themselves. While I know that where you find catfish you also find eels, still I am not prepared to believe such a remarkable statement. Please enlighten me.
Butte, Mont., October 28. * R. H. M.
Our first impression on receiving the above was that our esteemed correspondent was being guyed, but remembering how persistently an intelligent angling writer insisted that a fish known in his local waters as the eel-killer was a cross between the trout and the eel, we decided to give the query respectful attention. En passant, the eel-killer turned out to be the burbot, lake lawyer or ling (Lota maculosa). Yes, friend “R. H. M.,” the catfish and the eel are distinct fish. The latter, as a rule, breeds in brackish water and is of both sexes, albeit much discussion occurred some years ago as to its spawning habits and probable hermaphroditism. The catfish is not only of dual sex but is the best of parents, guarding its young until they are able to take care of them.
Source: The American Angler ©1888

Recipes:
Catfish Soup.
Three pounds of fish when they have been cleaned, skinned and beheaded; two cups of milk, heated, with a tiny bit of soda; two tablespoonfuls of prepared flour rubbed up with three of butter; two beaten eggs; two tablespoonfuls of minced parsley; three cups of cold water; pepper and salt.
Cover the fish with cold water and stew gently until the flesh slips easily from the bones; take from the fire, pick out and throw away the bones; chop the fish, strain the liquor in which it was boiled, and return all to the fire; as it boils, stir in floured butter, seasoning and parsley; boil two minutes; pour the scalding milk from another vessel over the eggs, turn into the tureen, add the fish-soup and serve. Line the tureen with Boston crackers, split, soaked in boiling milk and well-buttered before pouring the soup upon them. Pass sliced lemon with it.
Ladies Home Cook Book ©1896

Fried Cattish.—Catfish must be cooked quite fresh—if possible, directly out of the water. The larger ones are generally coarse and strong; the small-sized fish are the best. Wash and clean them, cut off their heads and tails, remove the upper part of the backbone near the shoulders, and score them along the back with deep gashes or incisions. Dredge them with flour, and fry them in plenty of lard, boiling fast when the catfish are put into the pan. Or you may fry them in the drippings or gravy saved from roast beef or veal. They are very nice dipped in a batter of beaten egg and grated bread-crumbs, or they may be done plain, though not in so nice a way, with Indian meal instead of bread-crumbs. Drain off the lard before you dish them. Touch each incision or cut very slightly with a little cayenne before they go to table.

Waffles and catfish are a famous dish at some eating-houses.
Mrs. Clarke's Cook Book ©1899

Baked Catfish
Take a. string of catfish—one fish for each person to be served; clean well, and cut down the center, and let stand in salt water for a while to draw out the blood. Dry them in a cloth, and then dip them in the yellows of eggs, and roll in cornmeal. Have a pan with plenty of fat, lay the fish in, and brown in the oven. In this style catfish are very rich. It is a fish having only the backbone to handle, and can be eaten without the trouble of small bones bothering. Catfish should not be less than six to eight inches in length. .
I Mrs. Alice L. Mendenhall, Kinmundy, Ill.
Source: The Journal of Agriculture Cook Book ©1894

Whale Oil

I grew up on Martha's Vineyard which was a huge whaling port during the 19th Century and Whale oil was what drove them to the open seas. Below are some tidbits about whale oil that some of you may not have known. The primary use of the whale oil was for lamps but it had other uses as well.

Whale-oil prepared by the method just described, is of a pale honey-yellow colour; but sometimes, when the blubber from which it is procured happens to be of the red kind, the oil appears of a reddish-brown colour. When first extracted, it is commonly thick, but after standing some time, a mucilaginous substance subsides, and it becomes tolerably limpid and transparent. Its smell is somewhat offensive, especially when it is long kept. It consists of oil, properly so called, a small portion of spermaceti, and a little gelatin. At the temperature of 40°, the latter substances become partially concrete, and make the oil obscure, and at the temperature of 82°, render it thick with flaky crystals. It is sold by the ton of 252 gallons, wine-measure. A gallon of oil, by measure, weighs 7 lb. 10 oz.
Source: The Whale Fishery ©1820

Using Whale Oil Soap to help protect fruit trees:
The manner in which Capt. Randall uses the whale oil soap, and which we consider the most important part of his communication, is as follows:—eight to ten pounds of whale oil soap are put into a common pail, to which a sufficient quantity of warm water is added, so that when well mixed together, the whole is about the consistence of good'thick paint. With this pail of soap, thinned in this manner, the man having a small tin pail, or bag, or pocket, filled with fine sand, tied round bis waist, with a coarse crash cloth, and a paint brush, is ready for operations. He first wets his cloth with soap, then scatters on some dry sand, and gives the trunk and branches a good rubbing; nfter which, with a hand brush, he puts on a coat of the soap, prepared as above, equal to a thick coat of paint. The time selected for the operation is just at the termination of a storm of rain, when the moss, or any roughness on the bark, will yield more readily to rubbing.
Source: Magazine of Horticulture ©1842

Increasing Consumption of'Whale-oil.—It appears worthy of remark, that notwithstanding the large consumption of coal fur gas, which has in a great degree superseded the use of oil for street-lighting, the aggregate consumption of whale-oil has very materially increased. This fact is of course referable to the fashion now become very general of burning table-lamps in the *ace of candles in our dwellings; but it must excite surprise in the mind of every one when first made acquainted with the fact, that during this time the use of candles in dwellings, and especially of wax-candles, has also increased in a greater proportion than the population. It has been suggested, and with much apparent reason, that this increase may be consequent upon the greater brilliancy of the streets since they have been lighted with gas, since we have thus been made dissatisfied with the quantum of light previously thought sufficient within our houses. Certain it is, that our apartmcnU are much more brilliantly lighted now than they were before the introduction of coal-gas, whether that invention be chargeable with the increase or not.—Porter's Progress of the Nation,
Source: The Penny Magazine ©1843

Lobsterville, Gay Head, MA.

Today Gay Head has been renamed to Aquinnah but for hundreds of years the name was Gay Head. Situated on the Menemsha Pond was a spit of land that during the 19th century looked very different from what it is today. When I was a kid growing up on Martha's Vineyard there were no homes on Lobsterville. However, there were lots of boats buoyed off it's shore. When I was 8 my dad and I would go scalloping in Memensha Pond and we were in the Lobsterville area, many times.

Below are some pictures of Lobsterville when it was a fisherman's shanty area. The article from The Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States ©1887 gives a good understanding of the area, and it's history.
EDGARTOWN DISTRICT.
Edgartown district includes Martha’s Vineyard, No Man’s Land, and the Elizabeth Islands. Lobster fishing is carried on mainly from Cuttyhunk, No Man’s Land, Lobsterville (Menemsha Bight), and Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard. This fishery was begun at the Elizabeth Islands as early as 1807. “The fishes are the same as those of the vicinity, but lobsters, which are scarce at Martha’s Vineyard, are caught in great abundance at all the Elizabeth Islands.” ' At present the lobster fishery of the Elizabeth Islands is confined almost exclusively to Outtyhunk, where it is engaged in by the majority of all the fishermen, about thirty in number. The season lasts about four months. The thirty fishermen run six small smacks and twelve open boats, setting from forty to one hundred and twenty traps each, or a total of 2,000 traps. The Outtyhunk Club, a New York association of sportsmen, also handles about one hundred and twenty pots, selling the larger lobsters obtained and using the smaller ones for bait. During the season of 1880 the lobster traps at Outtyhunk averaged about one marketable lobster each per day, or a total of about 230,000 lobsters, by count, for the season. The regular tautog fishermen of Cuttyhunk use about 1,000 pounds of lobsters each for bait during the season.
At No .Man’s Land, in 1880, the lobster fishery was conducted by fifteen men who make that island their headquarters during the fishing season. The catch in that year was small, averaging about 1,000 pounds to each man, and amounting altogether to about 15,000 pounds. From the town of Edgartown only about two hundred traps were set in 1880, yielding a total catch for the season of about 16,600 lobsters. The greater part of the lobster fishery of this district is carried on in the vicinity of Menemsha Bight and Gay Head, at the southwestern extremity of Martha’s Vineyard, and off No Man’s Land, by fishermen hailing from Ohilmark and Tisbury. Lobsterville consists of about fourteen temporary shanties, situated near the western end of Menemsha Bight. Along Menemsha Bight, including this settlement, about sixty lobster fishermen were located in 1880, using forty boats, of which one-half carried two men each and the remainder one man each. An average of forty traps was set by each boat in 1880, making a total of sixteen hundred traps for the region. They were worked in trawls of ten to fifteen traps each. The common form of lath trap is universally employed. The catch for 1880 amounted to about 200,000 lobsters. In ‘ 1879 this fishery was carried on from this locality by a much smaller number of men, with fourteen boats and 560 traps.
The fishing grounds range from the shallow water near shore, in depths of 1 fathom, to depths of 15 to 20 fathoms. The season usually continues four or five months, from May to October, but a few men sometimes begin fishing as early as the middle of March. Flounders, menhaden, dogfisb, and other common fish are used as bait. The average number of marketable lobsters caught to a trap per day varies from one to two. Fifteen lobsters of all sizes to a trap is considered a large catch. Nearly all the lobsters taken in this region are sold to smacks running principally to New York, but also, to some extent, to other smaller markets. About twelve well-smacks of different sizes making weekly trips visit this region during the season, and pay on an average about six cents each for all lobsters above 10% inches long.
After the smacks stop running, which sometimes happens about the 1st of August, the catch is sold mainly at Wood’s Holl at 3% cents per pound. During good seasons the monthly earnings for each man are said to range as high as $50 to $100. In 1880 the average earnings per man for the entire district were about $250 for the season. The following note from Mr. Frank M. Cottle, of West Tisbury, is of interest, as illustrating the rapid growth of the lobster industry in this region: “ Twenty years ago there was but one vessel in the lobster fishery on this coast, or rather in this vicinity; now there are a dozen. Then the business was not considered to be of any value, and but few men entered it at all. Within the past fifteen years, however, it has improved rapidly, and now there are some 60 men or more in this vicinity who depend upon it almost wholly during the season.” That the destruction of lobsters by fish in this district is very great is indicated by the observations of Mr. V. N. Edwards, of Wood's Holl, who, during October and November, 1877, examined the stomachs of hundreds of cod caught about No Man’s Land. Nearly all the fish he examined contained one or more young lobsters, and in many cases the stomachs were almost entirely filled with them.
THE FISHERY IN 1882.—During the summer of 1882, the author made many inquiries of the fishermen regarding the lobster fishery of the Martha’s Vineyard region, including No Man’s Land and the Elizabeth Islands, with the following results:
Lobsters have, from year to year, steadily decreased in size and abundance, in the upper part of Vineyard Sound, while at the same time there has been a proportionate increase in numbers, and the size has remained constant, about Gay Head, No Man’s Land, and Outtyhunk. About one-third of the catch only is under size or less than 10.} inches in length. According to some of the older fishermen of No Man’s Land, 1882 was one of the best lobster years ever ex perienced there. From fifteen to twenty men lobstered during the summer season, setting, on an average, sixty traps each, the greater part of which were arranged in trawls of eight to twenty traps. The catch during this season, from the middle of May to the latter part of September, amounted to about 100,000 marketable lobsters, weighing, on an average, 2Q pounds each. The price paid by the smacks was 8 cents each, making a total season’s stock for the twenty men of $8,000.
In addition to the twenty fishermen living on the island, there were six smacks, owned in New London County, Connecticut, with a combined crew of twenty-four men, which fished in the same region. Their catch, though large, was proportionately less than for the regular fishermen. As fast as they obtained fares. they proceeded to market, generally New York. One market smack, called the Boston Smack, made weekly trips to the island, and carried the catch of the fishermen to New York, at the rate of about 6,000 lobsters each trip. Another smack, the Daboll of New York, made occasional trips, carrying about the same amount of lobsters each time.
In the above reckoning no account has been taken of the fisheries of Menemsha Bight, near Gay Head, and of Cuttyhunk, at both of which places the catch for 1882 was much larger than for 1880. In the upper part of Vineyard Sound, on both the Martha’s Vineyard and Naushon sides, the fishery for 1882 was poor. The Wood’s Holl lobstermen set their traps during only a very short part of the summer, and the greater portion of their catch was under size.
The lobster season at No Man’s Land generally begins about the middle of May and continues until about the 20th of September. About October 1, the fishermen begin to turn their attention to the cod fishery, which lasts until bad weather sets in, and is again taken up in the spring, from April 1 to the middle of May. The lobster pots are set on all sides of the island, but mainly off the north and west sides, where there are numerous rocky patches, at distances of 1% to 2 miles from land, and with depths of 10 to 13 fathoms. Each of the fishermen owns one or two floating cars for the storage of his catch, awaiting shipment. Thirty such cars were in use during 1882, the larger ones having a capacity of 500 to 1,000 lobsters each, but there are others of smaller size. They are tied to stakes just off the shore, in front of the fishing village, and swing with the tide. They are made of two shapes; the smaller ones are generally rectangular, but the larger ones taper at one or both ends, but from the bottom and top, so as to present a rather narrow edge to the tidal currents, or to the waves, in stormy weather. This construction is rendered necessary from the fact that the area in which they are moored is exposed to a heavy sea, during strong easterly winds, and a plain rectangular car would soon be torn to piece& The bait used consists of menhaden, bluefish, flounders, and cod heads. Menhaden are preferred, and, in 1882, cost $8 per thousand.
The fishermen of this region recognize the two varieties of lobsters, called “school” lobsters and “ledge” or “rock” lobsters. The latter, apparently, remain about the island during the entire year, and live only upon the rocks or rocky grounds. The school lobsters appear about July 1, and are gone by the last of September. They are most abundant on smooth bottoms, but also occur among the rocks. Lobsters can, therefore, be caught upon smooth bottoms only during the season for school lobsters.
The boats used are the so-called “Vineyard fishing boats,” having one or two masts. These are moored just off the town, and are reached by means of dories. In case of an approaching storm, or when it is desirable to clean them, these small smacks are hauled upon the beach, which consists of large gravel stones, by means of a team of oxen, kept on the island for that purpose. Ladder-like frames, made in sections, and with the cross-pieces broad and flat, are placed under the boats, or, rather, the latter are hauled over the frames, to keep them from being worn by grinding against the gravel. The boat being brought in as near the shore as possible, one section of the frame, with the cross-pieces downward, is set in front of it, leading up the beach. The boat is then hauled upon it, and another section added, this operation being repeated until the boat has reached the proper height upon the beach, when it is braced from both sides. '
The N o Man’s Land fishermen all belong to Martha’s Vineyard, and live on the former island only during the fishing seasons. There are only two permanent residents on the island.
Summation of the lobster fisheries in Edgartown district in 1880.
Number of fishermen . . . .110
Number of boats . . . . . . 58
Value of same . . . . . $13,800
Number of lobster pots ...4,520
Value of same ............$4,520
Total amount of capital invested in the fishery .........$18,320
Number of barrels of bait used . . . .1,540
Value of same ............$770
Total quantity of lobsters caught and sold, in pounds....773, 100
Value of same to the fishermen .........$28, 347

This first picture was put on Facebook by Lori Robinson Fisher. Her picture dates to 1880's