MASSACHUSETTS: FALL RIVER DISTRICT. 



275 



L. THE DISTRICT OF FALL RIVER. 



88. GENERAL REVIEW OF THE DISTRICT. 



IMPORTANCE OF THE FISHERIES. The fisheries in this part of Massachusetts arc confined to 

 the capture of menhaden, shad, alewives, and a few other species, and shell-fish. In this district, 

 which includes the neighboring town of Swansea, the fisheries of the Taunton and adjacent rivers, 

 and, for convenience, the shad fishery at Holyoke on the Connecticut River, there is invested a 

 capital of $104,930. The value of the product is $63 3 903, and the number of persons employed is 

 280. The oyster fisheries of Taunton River and Cole's River are of considerable importance, and 

 for a few days during the height of the season, give employment to 400 men. About 52,000 

 bushels of oysters, valued at $23,000, are annually sold from the beds in this district. These are 

 mostly seed oysters, which are sold for transplanting, and have not been considered as an actual 

 product of the fisheries. The amount of native eatable oysters produced is 1,000 bushels, worth 

 $1,200. 



STATISTICAL SUMMATION FOR 1879. The following statements show in detail the extent of 

 the fishing interests of Fall River district: 



Summary statement of pa-sons employed and capital invested. 



a Cash capital, $15,000: wharves, shorehonses, and fixtures, $10,000; factory buildings and apparatus, $30,000. 

 Detailed statement of capital invested in vessels, boats, nets, and traps. 



Detailed statement of the quantities and values of the products. 



