As a resTilt of the opening of the Oregon and Washington coasts to 

 pilchard fishing in 193^, California fishermen "began taki;ig these fish near 

 the edge of the Japanese Current. Thoy sighted altacore in the area and, 

 although the alhacore could not he taken hy p-iorse seines, their presence 

 was reported and a numher of Pacific Northwest fishermen outfitted thsir 

 boats v/ith alhacore gear. 



In 1936, a total of 27,600 pounds of albacore was landed in Oregon. 

 While the deliveries were small, they were sufficient to interest "both 

 fishermen and packers in the possibility of developing a tuna fishery in the 

 Pacific Northwest. In 1937, the Oregon and Washington catches increased to 

 1,500,000 pounds £ind in the following year to 10,001,700 pounds, reaching 

 a peak of 3'+, 361,800 pounds in 19^. In recent years, the catch has 

 averaged about 10,000,000 pounds annually. In the first few years of the 

 Pacific Northwest fishery, a portion of the catch was shipped to California 

 for packing. However, in recent years, the catch has been canned in Washington 

 and Oregon canneries. In fact, tuna have been shipped to the Pacific Northwest 

 from California, Central America and Japan. 



The development of the albacore fishery in the Pacific Northv;est had a 

 far-reaching effect upon the tuna industry. A number of sai.mon canneries 

 were quir-kly adapted to the canning of tuna, and a number of new t'lJJia 

 canneries were constructed. Since albacore are taken largely with small 

 boats, haj.ibut fishermen, salmon trollers, shark fishermen, and other operators 

 of small fishing craft in the Pacific Northwest were able to enter the fishery. 

 The seasons for the other fish previously taken by the fisherinen were short and 

 they were desperately in need of another fishery in which they could engage 

 for a portion of the year. As experience was gained in the taking of eilbacore, 

 some fishermen operated for these fish throughout the season from Jtuie to 

 December, fishing from Mexico to the Pacific Northwest. Others fished for 

 tuna only when they v/ere plentifiil in the locality in which they normally 

 operated. In years when albacore v/ere plentiful alorg the coast, as many 

 as 3,000 vessels entered the tuna fishery. Many of these craft have become 

 dependent upon the albacore fishery for a considerable portion of their 

 annual income. 



Since the resumption of albacore fishing off the Pacific Coast States, 

 t'viro important trends have occurred with respect to the areas in which the 

 fish are taken. The first has to do with the increase of the volume of the 

 catch off Mexico. 



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