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Page 36
Southeast Jeffreys. Off the southeast edge of Jeffreys, about 24 miles
SE. from Boon Island, lies a piece of fishing ground having a hard
bottom of sand, gravel, and rocks, where depths slope away gradually
from the 50-fathom soundings near the main body of the bank to the
90-fathom mark farther out. This area is a good ground for cod and
haddock in the winter and spring and a hake ground in March. This
fishing spot is about 3 or 4 miles square and is bounded on all but the
western side by muddy bottom, which is of little value as a fishing
ground. Usually there is good haddocking in March on the outside of
Jeffreys, on its southeastern edge and in the cove between it and
Tillies in 60 and 70 fathom depths on a broken and muddy bottom. This
spot lies SE � from the Isle of Shoals, 27 miles to the center.
Eastern Shoal Water of Cape Ann. This is generally considered a part of
Jeffreys and is often spoken of as West Jeffreys by the fishermen. It
extends In an ENE. direction from Cape Ann for a distance of from 15 to
18 miles. It is, in fact, a southwest continuation of Jeffreys Ledge,
the two forming a nearly continuous ridge running NE. from Cape Ann a
distance of about 42 miles. Depths on the so-called Eastern Shoal Water
vary from 20 to 45 fathoms, the bottom being of rocks, pebbles, and
coarse gravel over most of its extent. Sand and mud occur on the edges.
The eastern part of the ground is resorted to by the haddock fleet
during the fall and early winter, and other parts are visited more or
less during the entire year for cod, haddock, and pollock by vessels and
boats from Cape Ann and by craft of various types from Boston and
Portland-line trawlers, gill-netters, and a few of the new type of small
otter trawlers, this latter fleet of craft constantly growing in number.
On the ledge cod, haddock, and cusk are taken in the full winter and
spring, winter, perhaps, furnishing the best fishing. There are also
more or less pollock, and hake constitute an important part of the
catch. In those seasons when herring make their appearance in these
waters the seiners make good catches here, mostly of food fish, as the
large herring are termed by the trade. The mackerel, also, appear on
these grounds and on the smaller grounds nearer to shore to northward
and westward in good-sized schools, usually from July 1 through
September. For many years the haddock catch from this bank has been of
considerable importance, and this statement remains true for recent
years as well.
Formerly this fishery was almost entirely carried on by trawlers and
hand-liners, but the gill-net fishery on these grounds is of great and
steadily growing importance. Of late the larger part of the haddock
catch has been taken by the "otter-trawl" method, this gear being
operated by steamers of considerable size and upon the more distant
grounds, such as Georges Bank, the South Channel, and the Western Bank.
The same change to fishing grounds farther offshore has to a great
extent taken place in the fleet of larger sailing vessels, thus leaving
Jeffreys and other inshore banks to the smaller craft; except that, with
the high prices of haddock and cod in the winter months, it is often
profitable for these larger vessels to run off to near-by banks for one
set and return to port the same day.
On the inner parts of this ground, particularly, the gill-net fleet
operates extensively, mainly in the full and spring, on northwest
Jeffreys 8 to 12 miles E. and SE. from Thacher Island, where the bottom
is sand and rocks. Other gill-netting grounds are 8 to 15 miles NE. by
E. from Thacher Island in 22 fathoms on a hard bottom of mud and mixed
material of sand and gravel. The Cove of Jeffreys, NE. by E. 12 to 15
miles from Thacher Island, is a favorite haddock ground in the spring
(April 20 to May 15) in 45 to 70 or even 80 fathoms, although gill nets
are not often fished in more than 50 fathoms because of the, weight of
the nets in the deeper water. In the spring (in April and May), the
haddock come in on Scantum, 10 miles NNE. from Thacher Island between
Jeffreys Ledge and the Isle of Shoals, on a broken bottom of rocks and
blue clay in 55 to 70 fathoms.
Off Newburyport and N. and SW. of the Isle of Shoals are gill-netting
grounds that are much used. Trawling and netting are carried on,
beginning in 40 fathoms in February and March and working off to 70
fathoms off Salisbury Bench in May. Cod are on this ground about two
weeks in October and in February and March are found in abundance off
Boars Head. Hake are present here all the fall and are found all along
the southeast side of these grounds in depths of 45 to 60 fathoms. A
certain amount of halibut may be taken in most years at various points
on a bottom of hard gravel in spring and early summer in 35 to 65
fathoms. In most years a large amount of mackerel is taken on Jeffreys,
notably so in 1925. Herring, also, are usually abundant here in "herring
years".
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