Fishing Grounds of the Gulf of MaineRich, Walter H. (Walter Herbert)
History
Fishing Grounds of the Gulf of Maine
Rich, Walter H. (Walter Herbert)
Fisheries -- Maine, Gulf of
Southeast Ground and Gravel Bottom. These lie S. of Seal Island,
forming an extensive piece of fairly level ground extensive piece of
fairly level ground. The western part bears a little E. of S. and the
eastern part about ESE. from the island. It is about 5 or 10 miles in
diameter. While this is really but one piece of ground, the eastern part
is called the Southeast Ground and the western part, from the nature of
its bottom, the Gravel Bottom. The eastern portion is muddy and has 40
to 60 fathoms. The western has 35 to 40 fathoms. It is a good cod ground
in winter and spring. Haddock are present from November to March,
inclusive; hake in summer. Fishing is done mainly by trawling by sloops
and vessels.
Machias Seal Island. Nineteen miles E. by S. from Moosabec Light.
This furnishes good ground in the water all about it, where depths are
from 15 to 54 fathoms over a generally rocky and uneven bottom. In
summer cod, haddock, and pollock are abundant here, the cod and haddock
remaining all winter. The fishery is carried on mostly by the smaller
vessels from Maine ports, principally those from Cutler, with an
occasional visit by larger craft, usually from the Portland fleet. This
ground is not much visited in winter. Fishing is done by trawling and
hand-lining.
Gannet Rock. This lies east of the Murre Ledges. All about it is good
ground in from 40 to 70 fathoms over a hard bottom. Cod are found here
in good number from March to May, and halibut are taken here from March
to May, inclusive.
[Table I--Fishing Grounds of the Bay of Fundy Area of the Gulf of Maine,
showing the principal species taken upon them.]
[Footnote 9: It (Fundy) was not clearly indicated by Verrazano (1524)
nor in the report of Gomez (1525), who probably saw something of its
entrance but fog or other unfavorable circumstances may have prevented
him from observing it more accurately, but we find in the first old
Spanish maps, in the latitude where it ought to be, names like these:
Rio hondo or 'fondo' (a deep river) or Bahia Hondo (a deep bay), or
Golfo (a gulf) once, also 'La Bahia de la ensenada', the bay of the deep
inlet.
Doctor Kohl, here quoted further says "On the maps of the seventeenth
and early part of the eighteenth century, especially, it is written Bay
of Funda. I believe that this name grew out from and is a revival of,
the old Spanish name 'Bahia fondo'".]
[Footnote 10: It is gratifying to announce that the winter of 1925-26
saw a large run of herring on this ground, where for a number of years
past there has been virtually no fishing for this species.]
[Footnote 11: "According to Porter C. Bliss, a thorough student of the
Indian dialects, Acadie is a pure Micmac word meaning place. In Nova
Scotia and Maine it is used by the Indians in composition with other
words, as in Pestum-Acadie; and in Etchemin, Pascatum-Acadie, now
Passamaquoddy, meaning 'the place of the pollocks'" (Doctor Kohl, _Dis.
of Maine_, p. 234)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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