Fish Monger History
Many of us grew
up with traditional, family owned and operated fish markets in town or in our
neighborhood. Many of these small fish markets though have gone the way of the
egg man, milk man, and local butcher shop – having been supplanted by larger
area super market chains.
Seafood peddlers once sold seafood in many
Eastern Shore town via horse drawn carts and later by trucks. These “fish
mongers” travelled the streets of Ocean City, Salisbury, Berlin, Snow
Hill, and many other Eastern Shore towns.
Some mongers used a small tin horn to announce
their arrival in the neighborhood.
Annual Lower Shore Fish Festivals
Spring Soft Shell Festival –
Crisfield – May
Tawes Crab and Clam Bake – Crisfield
– July
Hard Crab Derby Festival – Crisfield
– September
Skipjack Festival – Deal Island –
September
Harbor Day on the Docks – Ocean City
– October
A Fish Tale
The Eastern
Shore of Maryland has been producing seafood products for centuries. Native
Americans have exploited the abundance of local natural seafood and used it for
trading purposes as well. And since the colonial period oysters, clams, and
numerous species of finfish sustained early colonists as well.
Shad, herring, striped bass, sea trout and
sturgeon fed early settlers and were often salted and shipped to distant
markets. Oysters became vogue after the Civil War and places like Crisfield and
Cambridge became ground zero in trying to fill an insatiable national market.
Trains carried thousands of barrels of oysters to demanding markets in New
York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington and beyond. Because of this, thousands
of Eastern Shore men and women were employed within the oyster industry.
With the eventual wane of oyster production, the
blue crab filled in the seafood industry niche as best it could, but never
attained the economic impact that the oyster created. But fin fish such as
black drum, shad, sea trout, spot, croaker, striped bass and other species also
helped drive the economic machine on the Eastern Shore. Seafood has always been
an important part of the local economy and its multiplier effects could be
measured throughout the region. The Eastern Shore name has and will always be
synonymous with fresh, locally harvested, high quality seafood. From
our docks to your plate – nothing but the best!