FISHERIES OF THE GULF STATES. 
145 
IV.— FISHERIES OF MISSISSIPPI. 
Geographical features of the coast. — Mississippi is tlie middle member of the tier 
of five States having frontage on the Gulf of Mexico. Its coast line, which is about 
215 miles in length, is shorter than any of the other States except Alabama. The 
shores are low throughout, sandy in places, but generally marshy, and are broken by 
a number of small indentations, the most important of which are Point Aux Chenes 
Bay, Pascagoula Bay, Biloxi Bay, and St. Louis Bay. Each of these receives the 
water of a large number of minor streams. At a distance of about 10 miles the shore 
is skirted by a line of small, mostly low, islands, which have an important bearing on 
the fisheries of the region. Between the islands and the mainland is Mississippi 
Sound, which extends the entire length of the State, terminating on the west in Lake 
Borgne, Louisiana, and on the east at the mouth of Mobile Bay, Alabama. It is noted 
for its oyster beds and is the fishing- ground chiefly frequented by the Mississippi 
fishermen. 
The settlements on the coast are Pascagoula, Scranton, Ocean Springs, Biloxi, 
Beauvoir, Mississippi City, Pass Christian, and Bay St. Louis, all of which are more 
or less interested in the fisheries. 
General importance of the fisheries. — Taking the value of the fishery products as 
a basis, Mississippi ranks third among the Gulf States, being surpassed by Florida 
and Louisiana. In 1880 it occupied the fifth position. The State has had a phenomenal 
increase in its fishery interests since 1880, and no other State in this region or in the 
country has advanced in greater relative ratio. As shown in Section I of this report, 
the number of persons engaged in the fishing industry has increased 825.27 per cent; 
the capital devoted to the business has increased 4,839.89 per cent, and the value of 
the products has increased 990.06 per cent. The fishery resources of the State, 
especially the waters for oyster-culture, are still capable of much development, and 
the history of the past decade indicates that in a short time Mississippi will become 
one of the foremost oyster-producing States. 
General statistics.- —The extent of the commercial fisheries of Mississippi in 1889 
and 1890 is shown in the following tables. 
Table 41 shows 1,809 persons employed in the fisheries in 1889 and 1,721 in 1890, 
of whom more than half each year were employed on shore, in canneries, packing- 
houses, etc. The vessel fisheries are seen to have required the services of much 
fewer men than the shore or boat fisheries. 
The nationality of the persons employed in the fisheries of the State was chiefly 
American, as shown in Table 42, only 78 persons in 1890 being aliens. Of the Ameri- 
cans, about one-fifth are colored people, who are chiefly employed on shore. The 
largest number of foreigners obtain employment on the vessels and none are found 
in the shore industries. 
The capital invested in the fisheries of this State, as shown in Table 43, was 
$455,300 in 1889 and $434,710 in 1890. The investment is made up largely of shore 
property and cash capital employed in the canning and other related branches. Sixty - 
two vessels engaged in the fisheries in 1890; these, with their outfits, had a value of 
F. C. B. 1891—10 
