The Atlantic Salmon in the History of North America R.W
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Canadian Special Publication of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 80 DFO - L brary MPO - Bibliothèque III 1111 Ill 11 11 12038944 The Atlantic Salmon in the History of North America R.W. Dunfield Canad Canadian Special Publication of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 80 L0(9.6-1 The Atlantic Salmon in the History of North America R. W. Dunfield Department of Fisheries and Oceans Freshwater and Anadromous Division Scotia—Fundy Region Halifax, N.S. B3J 2S7 Fisheries & Oceans LIBRARY DEC 27 085 BIBLIOTHÈQUE Pèches & Océans DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES AND OCEANS Ottawa 1985 Published by Publié par Fisheries Pêches and Oceans et Océans Scientific Information Direction de l'information and Publications Branch et des publications scientifiques Ottawa K1A 0E6 © Minister of Supply and Services Canada 1985 Available from authorized bookstore agents, other bookstores or you may send your prepaid order to the Canadian Government Publishing Centre Supply and Services Canada, Ottawa, Ont. K1A 0S9. Make cheques or money orders payable in Canadian funds to the Receiver General for Canada. A deposit copy of this publication is also available for reference in public libraries across Canada. Canada: $11.95 Cat. No. Fs 41-31/80E Other countries: $14.35 ISBN 0-660-11923-4 ISSN 0706-6481 . Price subject to change without notice Director and Editor-in-Chief: J. Watson, Ph.D. Publication Production Coordinator: Diane P. Basso Typesetter: Graph Comp Design, Ottawa, Ont, Printer: National Printers (Ottawa) Inc., Ottawa, Ont. Cover Design and Chapter Graphics: André, Gordon and Laundreth Inc., Ottawa, Ont. Correct citation for this publication: DUNF1ELD, R. W. 1985. The Atlantic salmon in the history of North America. Can. Spec. Publ. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 80: 181 p. Table of Contents Abstract/Résumé V Preface vi Chapter I: Salmo Rex Ecce Salar 1 Britannia Waves the Rules 3 Fischying from a Different Angle 4 Pisciculture 5 End of the Beginning? 6 Notes 6 Chapter II: The Primeval Condition Streams of Silver 9 New World Shangri-La 11 The Amerindian Environmentalists 12 Especially Salmon 14 Indian-uity 15 From Need to Greed 17 Notes 17 Chapter III: The Precolonial Fishery Runic Salmon 21 First Tangible Wealth 22 Strange Nature, Marvelous Greatness 23 Notes 23 Chapter IV: The Early Colonial Fishery, 1604-1713 Arcadian Acadia 25 River of Canada 30 The New Found Land 31 New English Canaan 32 Enduring Enigma 34 Notes 34 Chapter V: Challenge and Conflict, 1713-1760 The Cod Wars 37 Acadia Smells of Fish 37 New France 40 In Cod We Trust (Newfoundland) 40 Salmon in Great Plenty (New England) 42 Casting Away Sin (Angling) 44 Nature's Bounty — Man's Wisdom 44 Notes 45 111 Chapter VI: Colonization and Cognition, 1760-1784 The Peace of Paris 47 The New Acadia (Maritime Provinces) 47 Canada (Quebec) 53 Newfoundland 54 New England 57 Roll Out the Barrel 58 Notes 58 Chapter VII: Emulation and Exploitation, 1784-1815 The Treaty of Versailles 61 The Maritime Colonies 61 Lower Canada 72 Upper Canada 73 Lake Champlain 75 Newfoundland and Labrador 76 New England 78 Fish and Be Damned 79 Notes 80 Chapter VIII: Disregard and Destruction, 1815-1845 Manifest Destiny 97 New Brunswick 98 Nova Scotia 103 Prince Edward Island 106 Lower Canada 106 Upper Canada 107 Newfoundland and Labrador 109 New England 111 Military and Social Maneuvers 112 Gold and Silver, Have I Some? 113 Notes 114 Chapter IX: Reprehension and Regulation, 1845-1867 Not Worth a Dam 119 New Brunswick 122 Nova Scotia 133 Prince Edward Island 140 Lower Canada 141 Upper Canada 145 Newfoundland and Labrador 146 New England 148 Angling 149 Prelude to the Future 151 Notes 153 Appendix A: Historical Methods of Packing Salmon 159 Appendix B: Salmon Catch/Export Statistics 164 Bibliography 173 iv Abstract Dunfield, R. W. 1985. The Atlantic salmon in the history of North America. Can. Spec. Publ. Fish. Agnat. Sci. 80: 181 p. The Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) has occupied a salient position in the history of eastern North America for at least the past 1000 years. Initially the species occupied a prominent niche in the prolific web of life that existed throughout its former occurrence area; millions of pounds of salmon were produced annually fi-om the freshwater streams between New York and Ungava — a resource that was a principal food source for the Amerindian cultures which shared its range. In a chronological and cumulative way, the salmon became an increasingly important factor in both the domestic and commercial life of the developing colonies; it provided a recreational outlet for the sportsman, and evolved as a principal object of intellectual and scientific investigation. The documented specifics of the salmon's history, however, are largely comprised of repetitive instances of overexploitation, careless destruc- tion of stocks and their environment, and ineffectual conservation actions. Despite the species' former importance, its more recent history is one of declining presence, and its destiny appears to be extinction. By documenting this story of discovery, exploitation, and decline, the urgent need for the employment of sound resource management practices to preserve the salmon is emphasized. Résumé Dunfield, R. W. 1985. The Atlantic salmon in the history of North America. Can. Spec. Publ. Fish. Agnat. Sci. 80: 181 p. Le saumon de l'Atlantique (Salino salar) joue un rôle prépondérant dans l'histoire de l'est de l'Amérique du Nord depuis au moins 1 000 ans. Au début, l'espèce occupait une niche écologique importante parmi les multiples formes de vie qui peuplaient son aire de répartition; les cours d'eau douce situés entre New York et l'Ungava produisaient chaque année des milliers de livres de saumon, lequel constituait alors la principale source alimentaire des communautés amérindiennes qui vivaient sur ce territoire. Par la suite et progressivement, le saumon est devenu de plus en plus important dans les activités familiales et commerciales des colonies en expansion; enfin, le saumon, qui constitue une prise de choix pour les pêcheurs sportifs, a fait, et continue de faire, l'objet de nombreuses études scientifiques. L'histoire du saumon est cependant marquée par de nombreux cas de surex- ploitation, par la destruction inconsidérée des stocks et de leur habitat ainsi que par des mesures de conservation inefficaces. Malgré l'importance qu'a eue jadis cette espèce, des données récentes nous indiquent qu'elle régresse et qu'elle semble vouée à l'extinction. En traitant de la découverte, de l'exploitation et du déclin du saumon, l'auteur fait ressortir le besoin urgent qu'il y a d'utiliser des méthodes de gestion des ressources efficaces afin de préserver l'espèce. Preface The following work describes the history of man's contact and experience with the Atlantic salmon in North America from aboriginal times to 1867, and is based principally on the revelations of primary archival documents and other historical material respecting the discovery, observation, exploitation, and management of the salmon resource. Although history may be of academic interest alone, with an exploration of it under- taken because of a natural desire to discover and understand the events and conditions of the past, its examination may also precipitate more practical benefits: with regard to the Atlantic salmon, which is presently suffering severe declines throughout much of its range, a knowledge and study of the past may reveal the reasons for the species' present situation, and evince the options for its future. A knowledge and understanding of our past associations with the salmon also reveal our successes and failures in conserving and managing the resource; this knowledge can be used to support or caution our actions in applying certain development techniques, in formulating resource control policy, or in generally managing both present and future stocks of salmon. A knowledge "of history, therefore, becomes fundamental to those concerned about the Atlantic salmon; it is intended that this report may be of particular value to those individuals. Although this report is designed to provide a chronological account of man's associa- tion with, and impact upon, the salmon throughout the history of North America to 1867, it was also considered essential to provide some early history and background of the species in Europe. Such an inclusion assists in explaining what was known about the salmon in pre- Columbian times, what was its appreciation and value, and how this knowledge and understanding affected subsequent contacts with the species in North America. The initial chapter of the report, therefore, deals mainly with this background to the North American story. It was also considered necessary to describe in some detail throughout the report the general developments which took place in the overall western North Atlantic fishery; the salmon fishery was initially a part of the whole, affected by general fishing trends and eventually emerging as a pursuit of individual importance and consideration. Even in the late 19th century, factors which affected the general Atlantic fishery also had repercussive effects on the salmon-fishing operation. Repeated references to the general fishery and related subjects, although at times appearing to deviate from the main topic of salmon, are nevertheless deemed appropriate for a better understanding of the situation. In researching information for this historical report, a great amount of information was encountered — more, in fact, than was anticipated or hoped for when research was begun. Much of the original material was not only detailed, but also of a nature that presented some placement difficulty within the planned report format. Statistical material, for example, was voluminous and could not be adequately presented in the main body of the report without considerable encumbrance for both the writer and the reader. Such information was, therefore, assigned to a series of appendices included in a separately issued Manuscript Report.