Authentic original antique print engraving published in "The Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States", 1884. By: George Brown Goode. Plate 182. Titled, "THE HALF BEAK, THE CALIFORNIA FLYING-FISH". Excellent condition, measures approx. 8.75x11.5 inches. "The Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States" was a multi-volume work by Goode and United States Fisheries commissioner Spencer F. Baird. Read below for history of this publication. This is an original antique NOT a reproduction. All items are shipped shrink wrapped flat on acid free backing.

The Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States

(Fisheries Exhibit in The U.S. National Museum, 1886, Smithsonian Archives)

The fish and marine life engravings from this publication were done as drawings from real specimens or sketches from the Fisheries Industries walks of life from around the country. The specimens were then stored at the Smithsonian. Once the artwork was engraved onto a copper plate it was printed and bound into multiple books showing marine specimens and the Fisheries Industries lifestyle. Below is a brief synopsis of the work behind the artwork. 

The famed ichthyologist (fish scientist), Smithsonian Museum administrator, and U.S. Fish Commissioner, George Brown Goode managed a large scientific staff to research and write this compendium of the state of the American fisheries in the early 1880s. It is a monumental, multi-volume work that describes fish and their life histories, ecological relationships, the equipment, and methods of American fishermen, as well as the American fishermen's way of life.

In 1871, Congress created the U.S. Commission of Fish and Fisheries to study declining fisheries and recommend solutions to reverse this trend. Acknowledging that the U.S. lacked fundamental knowledge of its fisheries, the first head of the Commission, Spencer Baird, initiated a research program to study fishes and their marine environment, fishing equipment and methods, fisheries statistics, and fish culture and propagation.

Content Scope

 To help answer the need for more detailed information on the history and current state of the U.S. fishing industry, George Brown Goode, Baird's assistant and later the Assistant Director of the National Museum (precursor to the Smithsonian), oversaw the research, writing, and publication of The Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States.

 Under Goode's direction, a team of more than 20 fisheries scientists and researchers and up to 20 clerical employees investigated the natural history of 239 marine mammals and fish, including seals, whales, turtles, fishes, lobsters, crabs, oysters, clams, and sponges, as well as their geographical distribution, size, migrations, and economic value. Goode's researchers studied fishermen and fishing towns, lending insights into 19th century attitudes towards this important American subculture.

(Department of Fishes Exhibit, 1880, Smithsonian Archives)

  This publication is profusely illustrated and has entire sections devoted to plates of animals of the sea, as well as prevalent fishing methods at the time. Among those who illustrated these seminal volumes were Captain J.W. Collins, an expert on New England fisheries for the Fish Commission; Henry Wood Elliott, an early advocate of fur seal conservation, who also illustrated an edition of Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes; Captain B.F. Conklin; and J.S. Ryder. T.W. Smillie, the chief photographer for the Smithsonian, contributed photographs.

Part of the Census

 Goode and his staff produced this enormous volume of material in cooperation with the superintendent of the 10th Census of Population. Fisheries were one of many aspects of American life and industry that the U.S. government investigated while simultaneously counting the nation's population. Other topics captured during the Census included mining, manufacturing, waterpower, power sources and machinery, Native Americans, forests, and newspapers and periodicals. Goode died tragically in 1896 at the age of 45 after completing a volume on the history of the first 50 years of the Smithsonian Institution.

Author: George Brown Goode (1851-1896)

Date Published: 1884-1887

U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, DC

                        Reference- NOAA