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The Creation of the First Public Salmon Hatchery in the United States
Author(s) -
Moring John R.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
fisheries
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.725
H-Index - 79
eISSN - 1548-8446
pISSN - 0363-2415
DOI - 10.1577/1548-8446(2000)025<0006:tcotfp>2.0.co;2
Subject(s) - hatchery , fishery , fish hatchery , business , fish <actinopterygii> , biology , aquaculture , fish farming
The first public salmon hatchery in the United States was constructed in 1871 at what was then known as Craig's Pond Brook, Maine. Funded by a consortium of northeastern states, the eggs and juveniles reared at the hatchery were intended to assist rehabilitation of depressed runs of wild Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar ) in New England. By 1876, however, Atlantic salmon also were being distributed to at least 19 states and several countries, including such unlikely destinations as North Carolina, Texas, and Nebraska. Commercial weir operators on the Penobscot River sold live adult Atlantic salmon from their traps and these were transported in semi‐submerged “salmon cars” to a holding pond at the hatchery. These cars were actually wooden boats with 100 holes drilled to provide circulation and oxygen. Charles Atkins, the first superintendent of the hatchery, developed several innovative culture techniques that are still in use today, such as his modification of the “Russian dry method” of spawning which improved egg fertilization success. His early attempts at fish tagging resulted in some of the first information in the United States on instream movements and homing of Atlantic salmon. Original handwritten documents, long stored in the hatchery attic, provide insight to the early years of operation for what is today known as Craig Brook National Fish Hatchery.