The American Lobster, by Francis H. Herrick.  Bull.  U. S. Fish
   Com. for 1895, pp. 1-252.

HISTORY OF THE FISHERY.

Ever since the early Puritan settlers first learned from the Indians how to utilize the lobster, it has been one of the most prized articles of food in the New England States.  The early town records of Massachusetts contain frequent references to this valuable crustacean, and efforts were made at an early day to conserve the supply.

At first, as most settlers lived on or near the coast, each family could easily secure its own supply, but as the settlements gradually extended farther inland this became inconvenient, and it soon became customary for certain persons living on the coast to attend to supplying the wants of the inland settlers, and thus the commercial fishery was established.

The coast of Maine is very favorably situated for this fishery.  In its eastern and middle sections the shore is bold and rocky, while it is cut up by large deep inlets and coves which are studded with numerous islands, large and small, and by bold rocky promontories.  Groups of islands are also numerous farther off shore, like the Fox and Matinicus Islands, Deer and Mount Desert islands.  Large and small fresh-water rivers are numerous and the granite bottoms of these channels and inlets form admirable breeding grounds.  In the western end the shores are not so rocky, being broken frequently with sandy reaches, while the rivers are small and comparatively shallow.  West of Casco Bay the islands are infrequent.  As a result of this conformation of coast the best fishing grounds in Maine are between Cape Elizabeth and Quoddy Head.

As early as 1830 smacks from Boston and Connecticut visited Harpswell for fresh lobsters, and it is very probable that even before this time they had visited the points farther west in the State, as the history of the fishery, so far as known, shows that it gradually worked to the eastward.  This was doubtless owing to the fact that the trend of settlement in the early part of the century was in that direction.  It is also probable that, for some time before the people along the coast took up the fishery, the smackmen themselves did their own fishing.  This is easily believed when the great abundance is considered.  It is known that this was done in Massachusetts.

During summer the lobsters were very common close in shore and could easily be gaffed by boys at low water; but this could hardly be called a regular fishery.

The regular fishery began with the use of hoop-net pots, which were generally of very rude construction, and the facility with which the lobsters escaped from them led to their disuse soon after the lath pots began to be introduced.  The lath pots were essentially the same in construction as those now used on the coast of Maine, and each pair of fishermen then handled between 25 and 50.