400 



MARINE FISHERIES OF NORTH CAROLINA 



TABLE 19 



Production of Food Fish, Gross Weights per Capita of Population in 

 Early Period, 1887-1908, and Late Period, 1921-1940 



Average 



Annual 



Population 



Millions 



Average 



Annual 



Production 



Pounds '000 * 



Average 



Annual 



Per Capita 



Pounds '000 



Gross * 



I. Population of Eastern f States and 

 production of Atlantic, Gulf and Great 

 Lakes. 



1887-1908 



1921-1940 



Per cent of change 



2. Population of United States and pro- 

 duction of United States not including 

 Alaska and Mississippi River System. 



1887-1908 



1921-1940 



Per cent of change 



534 

 101.4 



+90.0 



72.1 



122.4 



+ 69.8 



914,184 

 1,177484 

 + 29.1 



1,063,710 



1^772,542 



+66.6 



16.9 

 11.6 



-314 



14.8 

 14-5 

 -2.3 



* Gross fish weights as landed by fishermen. 



t Twenty-six states east of the Mississippi River plus Louisiana and District of Columbia. 



In considering the regions and sections of the country, it should be 

 remembered that the greater part of Pacific food fish is canned and most 

 of the canned fish product comes from the Pacific. The Great Lakes-At- 

 lantic-Gulf regions are the main source of fresh and frozen fish, and most 

 of the produce from these regions is distributed in these forms. 



The most spectacular advance in production was, of course, the Pacific 

 region, the rapid development of which began after World War I. The 

 Pacific and Gulf of Mexico are the only two regions to show an increase in 

 the number of fishermen, the Pacific increase being nearly three times that 

 of the Gulf. The Pacific is the only region to show a lower average actual 

 price of food fish in the late period than in the earlier, and, accordingly, a 

 much lower relative or index price. These price changes are the result of a 

 great increase in production of cheap fish, notably pilchard, the largest 

 volume single item of the entire country in 1940, at a price of 0.56 cents 

 per pound or one-eighth of the average country-wide price of all food fish in 

 that year. 



The regions which make the poorest comparative showing are the Middle 

 Atlantic (New York, New Jersey and Delaware) and Chesapeake (Mary- 

 land and Virginia). These regions experienced the greatest percentage (over 



