Fish Catching Was An Art

The Native Americans along the Pacific Coast were most ingenious at devising the tools needed to catch fish. The Chumash, for instance, of the central California coast, made circular fish hooks of bent cactus spines or abalone shell by removing the interior of the shell. For bait, they used cactus, black mussels or clams.

Fish were also caught in a conical shaped trap, or weir, made of willow sticks, placed at an opening in a stream where fish were most likely to go. The same type of trap was used for lobsters and crabs.

Gill nets were made of milkweed or sea grass fiber. These fibers could be knotted together to form seaworthy nets.

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Maps Interesting, But Not Necessarily Accurate

A map is a two-dimensional representation of the earth’s surface or a part of it. Early maps were frequently inaccurate, but they made up for it with interesting drawings, paintings and descriptions. Among the most intriguing are the navigational maps.

It was the imaginary places and notations on many early maps that prompted many people to go to sea. Fat, naked cherubs blew wind into the sails of ships. Drawings of mermaids and sirens, dolphins and other sea animals, and even references to islands occupied by giant cannibals made those who longed for adventure want to “go to sea and see.”

Ocean sea areas were identified in several ways. A simple wave pattern was one of the earliest. A fine, dotted stipple was often used and a zigzag pattern forming shading was also popular. In the 18th century, lines were drawn parallel to the shores, at increasing distances, to depict water.

Maps were a cooperative effort among a group of craftsmen. Artists and engravers worked with printers to depict the notes of navigation in published form.

When copper plates were used, the maps were colored in by hand afterwards. These plates were re-used over and over, gradually losing the distinctness of line. Some were passed from printer to printer, and used through many years.

Since the maps were considered works of art, most early maps included elaborate cartouches, giving the names and addresses of both the artist and the printer. The most valuable ones today are those made before the middle of the 19th century.

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