Lobster, Shellfish and Sardine on Swan Island
After the mackerel industry had become
unprofitable, the class of fishermen who had been there employed
turned naturally to some other branch of the fisheries. The most
profitable inducement was held out in the lobster fisheries. Few
of these fish had been caught previous to 1857. They were then
very abundant, especially near the shore. They were of no value
except as a fisherman would occasionally catch some for use in
his own family. Only the small ones were used as food; the
larger ones were thrown away as unfit to be eaten. The superior
quality of the lobster as a food began to be appreciated. So
about the year 1857 a smack ran between Swan's Island and
Boston, but she could not carry and dispose of in the market
what three or four men at Swan's Island caught. Generally it was
the older men, who were unable to go far from home, who were
engaged in catching lobsters.
The difficulty of transporting live
lobsters long distances in sailing vessels, led to the
establishment of canning factories at various points, one of
which was built at Old Harbor. This somewhat stimulated the
business. A large number of shore fishermen forsook their former
mode of fishing, and turned their attention to catching lobsters
for the factory. Prices were low and the supply was usually in
excess of the demand. By 1870 prices had to be raised to secure
enough for the canning factories, and by 1880 the supply had
been reduced so much that the canning factories to some extent
were abandoned. Increased steamboat facilities made it
practicable to ship live lobsters to the Boston market. In 1890
the demand had greatly exceeded the supply, and prices were
consequently gradually raised.
At first only small boats were used, as
lobsters could be caught in abundance near the shore. As they
grew scarcer larger and larger boats were required to go farther
from shore. Now the fishermen have a fine fleet of boats, valued
from $100 to $600 each. O. B. Whitten, State commissioner of sea
and shore fisheries, informs me that in 1876 there were one
hundred and eighteen men engaged in the lobster fisheries some
part of the year. The catch was 688,628 lobsters, valued at
$56,008.14. In 1897 there were one hundred and forty-two men,
who caught 740,967 lobsters, valued at $75,208.56. At the former
date all sizes of lobsters were caught and sold, but now it is
prohibited by law to sell any less than ten and one-half inches
in length. In comparing the above figures it will be seen that
there is not only an increase in the gross stock, but also in
the catch.
The following is a report of the
property engaged in lobster fisheries from this town, and is a
conservative estimate;
Number of large boats, 139; valued at $20,850.
Number of small boats, 133;valued at 2,660.
Number of lobster cars, 139; valued at 1,390
Number of traps (estimated), 50 to a
man, at $1 each, 6,950.
Making the property so invested over $30,000.
The porgy fisheries for a time engaged
quite a number of our fishermen, and offered luring inducements
to invest capital. They were chiefly valued for the oil they
contained. Suitable vessels were built, expensive nets bought;
buildings and wharves were erected to provide for trying out the
oils. Although these fish were so abundant, yet they were so
persistently followed and caught by hundreds of small steamers,
as well as by boats and vessels of every description, that they
suddenly disappeared from the coast, and have never returned.
Many of our townsmen lost heavily by this failure, as many had
invested nearly all their property in the fishing gear and
property that was left useless on their hands. Some it took
years of thrift, and others never recovered from these losses.
Shell fish have always been depended
upon to supply the necessities of the fishermen when all other
sources have been cut off. In fact, it is doubtful if any of
these islands would have been settled had it not been for this
unfailing source of food supply. The Indians utilized this means
of subsistence, as is seen by the immense heaps of clam shells,
often forming embankments many feet high. They are also found to
considerable depth in the ground, thrown there by some
convulsion in nature, or by the gradual settling, caused by the
weight added on top. It is said that during the greater part of
one winter, owing to the severity of the weather, supplies could
not be brought here; the principal food during those weeks of
isolation were clams and seabirds. This species of fish has the
power of rapid propagation, as it is probable that several crops
are hatched and reach maturity during the year. Shell fish have
been constantly dug, from the time of the earliest settlement to
the present time, without any signs of exhausting the supply.
At first clams were used for food and
for bait in fishing. Later they were salted in barrels and
disposed of in the markets of other seaports for bait. Since
lobster canning has proved unprofitable, many of these factories
are canning clams, there being a good market for all that can be
produced. At present clams are being shipped in the shell to the
Boston market. The income received in tills town from shell fish
during the year 1897 was $1,500.
A sardine factory was built at Old
Harbor in 1895 by H. W. Joyce, which furnishes an excellent
market for the abundance of herring, which are found more
plentiful near this and adjacent islands than at any other place
on the Maine coast. The income from this branch varies from
$10,000 to $25,000 per year.
The fishing business will undoubtedly
remain, as it has ever been in the past, the main industry in
this town, as nature has placed this island in a sea rich with
this resource. Other industries, such as the granite works, ice
cutting, etc., may be substituted in part, but the products of
the sea are more sought for every year, and while the
compensation is adequate, our hardy fishermen can be relied upon
to supply the market.
Additional Reading:
Fishing Industry
Commanders and their Vessels
Source: A History of Swan's Island,
Maine, by H.W. Small, MD, Ellsworth Me, Hancock County
Publishing Company, Printers, 1808
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