The Herring Fishing Industry

Cannon’s Ferry had a long tradition of herring fishing, with numerous fishing houses where individual fishermen stored their boats and gear and processed their catch. In the mid 1940s, twelve local fishermen formed a cooperative business where fish could be bought, sold, and processed, and the business changed hands several times over the years. One of the last owners was the Perry Wynns Fish Company, which also operated a fishery in Colerain, NC, and during its ownership the fishery expanded from one large wooden building to several nearby cinder block buildings. Each year around Easter, when the dogwoods bloomed, the annual herring run brought hundreds of fish caught in pound nets to the main wooden building, where they were unloaded onto conveyor belts, washed, cut by women who collected the roe, and then sent by conveyor to salting bins or pickling vats for preservation. In later years, roe was canned in one of the cinder block buildings, and fish scrap was cooked into fish meal used as fertilizer for local crops. The herring industry provided Chowan County and its residents a strong economy and prominent food source for many years, and although it has declined in recent years because of low fish populations, herring fishing remains an important part of Chowan County culture.

North Carolina · United States