Maritime History of The United Kingdom - Fishing and Whaling

Fishing and Whaling

In the 19th and early 20th centuries herring fishing was a major activity in Britain. Herring fishing stopped in England and Wales during the 1960s but continued in Scotland until 1977/8. In 1937 the herring catch at Yarmouth dropped dramatically, then that at Lowestoft declined.

Trawling has also been a major activity, with the use of radio navigation aids and echo sounders making life easier now. Fishing in waters off Iceland became important, which led to three "Cod Wars" from the 1950s to the 1970s. British boats were excluded from Icelandic waters in 1976. In 1977 a 200-mile (320 km) fishing limit was set up by the European Economic Community, and British waters were opened to other Community members. This led to overfishing. Landings decreased 28% between 1967 and 1997, with fishing now mainly off Scotland.

Other sorts of fishing also take place on a commercial basis such as for crab, lobster, shellfish and mackerel. Sport fishing is popular from coasts and boats, including for shark off south west England.

In the past local conditions led to the development of a wide range of types of fishing boats. The bawley and the smack were used in the Thames Estuary and off East Anglia, while trawlers and drifters were use on the east coast. In 1870 paddle tugs were being used to tow luggers and smacks to sea. Steam trawlers were introduced in 1881, mainly at Grimsby and Hull. The steam drifter was not used in the herring fishery until 1897. In 1890 it was estimated that there were 20,000 men on the North Sea. The first trawlers fished over the side but in 1961 the first stern trawler was used at Lowestoft for fishing in Arctic waters. By 1981 only 27 of 130 deep sea trawlers were still going to sea. Many were converted to oil rig safety vessels. However the "inshore" boats landed a greater weight of fish even in 1973.

Herring fishing started in the Moray Firth in 1819. The peak of the fishing at Aberdeen was in 1937 with 277 steam trawlers, though the first diesel drifter was introduced in 1926.