Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1900-02-17
POTOMAC RIVER .SEINERS.

The fisheries On the Potomac river
below this city are making preparations
for the fishing season which will begin
soon, The river will soon be netted
with seines of all descriptions for the
purpose OF catching herring and shad.
A very small portion OF the inhabit-
ants OF the city know OF the amount OF
fishing done on the Potomac by various
companies and Of the manner and meth
cd of catching the fish.
The fishing for shad and herring will
commence about the 1st of March and
will continue probably until the middle
OF May.
The fish are caught by seines, trap
nets AID drift nets. The seines are the
pripcipal means of hauling 10 the fish.
A seine is long net averaging from 10
to 80 feet in width and from one-half to
TWO miles in length, When these seines
are used one end is fastened to large
boat of twenty to forty oars which
leaves the fishing shore and Is rowed uD
stream and around in semi-circle, re.
turning to the starting point. Here
with the assistance of the current OF the
stream the ends are drawn slowly 10 by
a windlass operated by horse or steam
power. The immense loop becomes
smaller and smaller and finally the
seine is drawn on shore aud the catch
of fish is EN- ptied out.
The trap nets are very interesting
also. and 10 these nets are caught great
quantities OF fish. They are stationary
and are so cleverly erected that the
fish are led into them and cannot lind
their way out, They come in contact
with single net, and in following 1t
are led into an enclosure, They fol
low the walls and 60 still farther into
second enclosure. and here the walls
are constructed so that it happens shat
fish rarely escapes. In all there are
400 trap nets on the river, OF which $40
are on the Virginia side and the re-
mainder on the Maryland shore.
The seine nearest the Day is situated
on the Virginia shore at Aqua creek,
and it is 600 fathoms long. This one
fishery employs about twenty-five men.
The fishery adjacent 10 this is the Gums
fishery, managed by BslliDger q Glib
son. They use 800 fathoms OF seine,
employ twenty-five men, and have
three horses to furnish the power for
their windlsss. The Stoney Point is
next in line toward Washington, and is
managed by Ballinger & Gibson. They
wind 800 fatboms of net over their
windlass and employ forty men.
The next fishery is noted as 0eiI g
nearly the largest seine fishery in the
world. They lave 1000 fathOms OF
net, and their windlass Is operated by
steam. In their employ are eighty
men. All of the fisheries described
thus far are on the Virginia side OF the
Potomac. The fishery nearest the bay
on the Maryland side is located at
Caspman's Point, and Is managed by
George A. Gale, of baltimore. He en-
ploys forty men and uses $50 fsthoms
of net.
He operates entirely for shad and
herring, and salts more herring than
any fishery on the river. Heron &
Lindsay are the two controllers of the
fishery situated at Bar Landing on the
MARYLAND shore. They use here sou
fathoms of net, and at Monkeys point
they control a fishery where they have
300 fathoms of seine. Henry and Geo.
Raum control fisheries at Tulip Hill
and Tent Landipg, Maryland. respec.
lively, which fish with 375 fathoms OF
seine and employ twenty-five men.