The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1882-03-10
VOL. XXVI----NO. 10.
Fish Ways.
Fish in Deer Creek Half Century Ago.

MR., EDITOR: threading your article on Fish
ways proposed to be constructed in Deer Creek
and other large streams in Our county, by the
passage OF an act OF the Legislature, 1t seemed to
me mat the end would not Justify the MEANS
You state that ut is said that many years ago
snad ana herring, especially the latter, We're
caught IN great numbers several miles above the
mouth of Deer Creek" Since the dams were
made II has been impossible for the fish to ascend
ward passage was that of the Stafford MILL con-
structed about l77O: The next, about half mile
above, was the old Cumberland Forge, made
little earlier. The third, three-fourths of mile
from the latter, was made about ITO.
The varieties of fish making their annual return
to Deer Creek, within the earliest recollection OF
the writer, say from 1876 were the black mullet,
yellow perch, branch herring, hickory shad, and
an occasional small white shad. The white shad
water, They are shy fish and are mostly found
in deep water But the young ones, like young
rats, often venture where the old ones deem II
Deer Creek before the canal was made, had
two mouths. The lower was converted into
part OF the car al and when the river was high In
the spring the water was often backed up TO Stat
ford bridge, and the angling along its banks es-
pecialy for yellow perch, afforded fine sport for
first TO make their appearance. They would as
cend the rocky bed up to the dam, and being
checked tnere would penetrate the Elbow branch,
emptying into the creek little below the DAM
The youngsters of the surrounding country
would assemble in the evenings and build large
hres on each side of the creek, and at night en-
gage IN storlning each others positions with fire.
brands, and sometimes with stones, after having
hshed the creek and branch with gig, scoop-net
ana torch of tar and tow, wading the creek for
FOR three-quarters of mile from the small island
below Stafford Bridge to the dam. The next fish
that ventured up this stream were the branch
herring and hickory shad. They also came in
great numbers as high as the dam, at which point
they sometimes collected in such numbers that
the scooper conld scarcely raise his net from the
waters surface with its contents and a great
many were also caught in the three fish pots be-
tween the mouth and the dam, The branch her.
ring is q very inferior kind hardly worth the saw
ing. rms great quantity of fish Astounding In
the Susquehanna and its tributaries was from the
writers earliest remembrance up to 1910, when
the supply began to fail. There was n fishery at
the upper and one at the lower mouth of the
creek, at which large quantities of herring were
caught: also at or near Shures Landing. But
they did not get much higher up the river and 1t
was onlywhen they abounded so plentifully that
they were taken at these fisheries. When the
quantity diminished all these small fisheries were
ABANDONED and the run seemed to get no higher
up than the old Port Deposit bridge or the head
OF tde-water Even before the Tide Water
Canal was finished, in 1870, the supply was great
ly diminished. and but few assembled Deer Creek
as high as Stafford dam.
now suppose there were fsh-ways made for the
passage OF fish up the creek, they would probably
cost considerable sum and be liable to be car,
rled away ny every breaking up of the ice ; and
what would he the benefit? A few black mullets
ana some branch herring ascending as high up,
probably, as Wilson'S mill 1t strikes the writer
that the water of Deer Creek is not congenial to
either California salmon or black bass otherwise
some at least, placed therein would have remain
ed IN the stream and II the fish that annually
frequented this creek fell Off so largely before the
mouths were closed by the canal, what prospect
OF supply or increase Of salmon, bass or any
other foreign variety?
Mr.. James W. Williams, during or about the
time he was member of the Legislature, con-
eeived project of this kind to aid the fish to as
cend the creek, but he soon found it was imprac-
ucable ana abandoned the same. B.A.