This sign is located along the Astoria River Walk west of the Maritime Museum.
Marker Name: Bounty of the Sea
Marker Text: Commercial fishing as a way of life also generates a lot of activity on shore. Not just the fishing boat captains and crews, but workers in restaurants, canneries and fish processing plants, wholesale and retail sales, and marine supply stores, as well as scientists and statisticians, all depend on the seasonal harvests of the fishing fleet for their livelihoods.
In its heyday, Astoria was known as the salmon canning capital of the world. Fishermaen netted millions of pounds of salmon. By the 1880s, no fewer than 40 canneries lined the shores of the lower Columbia River, producing huge amounts of canned salmon. This delicacy was shipped to markets and tables all over the world.
Salmon is no longer king. Catches began to decline long ago, and canneries diversified into processing other types of fish. By the 1930s, canning was supplemented by other methods such as freezing fish and shipping fresh fish under refrigeration. But today, seafood of many kinds still identifies the Columbia River region and provides a living for many people.
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