FISHERIES OF THE GREAT LAKES IN 1885. 213 



occurs, and in the lower portion in the vicinity of Presque Isle and 

 southward the soil is gravelly and the land generally high, while the 

 water is in some places quite deep close to the shore. The only good 

 harbor is at Presque Isle, though at Thompson's Harbor and other 

 places there are well sheltered but shallow inlets which afford protec- 

 tion to small boats. 



Population. — There are no large towns in the county. The coast set- 

 tlements are Spencer's Dock, Rogers City, Crawford's Quarry, Thoinp- 

 son'sHarbor, Presque Isle, and Bell. The population is largely depend- 

 ent upon the lumber trade, and in the vicinity of the settlements there 

 are a good many scattered farm-houses. 



Gill-net fishery. — Gill-nets were first used from the present site of 

 Rogers City in 1862, at which time both whitefish and trout were 

 very abundant. In 1867 the apparatus was introduced at Crawford's 

 Quarry. Stone and float nets were at first used, but of late they have 

 been generally replaced by those rigged with corks and leads. The 

 fishery at Crawford's Quarry grew to be quite important, but was al- 

 together abandoned in 1879 when the fishermen moved to Rogers City, 

 which has abetter harbor and is more frequently visited by the steam- 

 ers. In 1885 the only gill-net fishing was from Spencer's Dock and 

 Rogers City, and chiefly from the latter place. The fishing ground is 

 a strip about 2 miles distant from the shore, from 5 to 10 miles wide 

 and extending from a spot 16 miles north of Rogers City to another 12 

 miles south of that village. The bottom is of sand and clay, and the 

 depth of the water varies from 12 to 60 fathoms. About three-quarters 

 of the fish taken are trout, and the rest whitefish. The fishing is carried 

 on two months in the spring and three in the fall, generally from the 

 early part of April to the beginning of June, and from the 1st of Au- 

 gust to the last of November. The nets used are from 500 to 750 feet 

 long and 6 feet deep. The web and line is usually obtained from the 

 fish dealers at Alpena, and is made into nets by the fishermen during 

 their leisure hours at home. 



Pound-net fishery — Fishing with pound-nets has been carried on in 

 a small and desultory way at Presque Isle and vicinity since 1860. At 

 other places in the county they were not introduced until 1885. In Au- 

 gust of that year five nets, from 28 to 37 feet deep, were put in at points 

 on Hammond's Bay from 14 to 16 miles north of Rogers Citj r . Tbey are 

 set on a sandy bottom for whitefish, pickerel, and herring. Three nets 

 were set about the same time at Spencer's Dock, 12 or 13 miles north of 

 Rogers City, in from 42 to 50 feet of water. At Thompson's Harbor 

 they were introduced at the same date by a firm from Bay City, Michi- 

 gan, whose two nets were set in water 27 and 39 feet deep, on sand and 

 clay bottom, for the purpose of catching whitefish and pickerel. All 

 of these pound-net fishermen expected to get their most productive fish- 

 ing in the spawning season, which extends through the greater part of 

 the month of November. 



