Crescent City Profile - California Sea Grant

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other factors highlighted by study participantsthat interact with and affect the local fishingcommunity. 2The information presented is based on archivaland field research conducted between July2007 and March 2009. 3 Fieldwork includedobservation, informal and formal interviewsand group meetings. These activities engagedapproximately 50 people, including 20 localcommercial and recreational fishermen, 10fish buyers, owners and/or employees of 10fishery-support businesses, the harbormasterand staff, as well as other community memberswho have experience and knowledge of localfisheries. Field data were analyzed togetherwith commercial fishery landings data 4 , andinformation from other primary and secondarysources to interpret patterns, variability andchange within and across fisheries and thefishing community over time.History of the Port and theSurrounding AreaNamed after its crescent-shaped beach,Crescent City was settled in the 1850sfollowing the discovery of gold on the TrinityRiver. Mining along with logging, farming andfishing opportunities soon brought thousandsof new settlers to the area, which at that timewas inhabited by the native Tolowa and Yurokpeoples. Conflicts arose as more settlersarrived and acquired land (often by forcefrom the native people), eventually leadingto the Red Cap War in 1856 and the removalof several tribes to the Hoopa Valley IndianReservation (Norman et al. 2007).The town of Crescent City was incorporatedin 1854, and its natural harbor (the only onebetween Humboldt Bay, California and CoosBay, Oregon) became a key port of entry andsupply center for settlers. The Crescent CityWhaling Company was established in 1855(Starks 1923) but was short-lived (Bertão2006). However, offshore whaling operationscontinued at Crescent City until 1894. Inthe late 1880s, the Battery Point Lighthouse(located on the mainland) and St. George ReefLighthouse (located eight miles offshore) werebuilt to help mariners navigate the treacherouscoastal waters (Scofield 1954). 5Road transportation began with theconstruction of the county’s first plank road in1858; the Redwood Highway between Eurekaand Crescent City opened in 1923 (Pierce1998). The first local railroad opened in theearly 1900s, primarily to transport lumberfrom nearby Smith River to Crescent City forshipment to the growing San Francisco Bayarea and beyond (McEvoy 1986).As the gold rush slowed in the late 1800s,residents turned to other natural resourcesin the area, massive redwood forests andabundant fishery resources such as salmon,groundfish and crab. Timber harvestingwas the primary industry for many decades,particularly during the post-World War IIU.S. housing boom. However, by the 1960s,an estimated 90% of the redwoods were gone(Norman et al. 2007). As logging declined,fisheries became an increasingly importantindustry in this sparsely populated coastalcommunity.On March 28, 1964, a 9.2 magnitudeearthquake off Alaska caused a tsunami thatdestroyed much of the town and harbor, badlydamaged Citizens Dock, and resulted in 11deaths. (A 1,000-year storm in December1964 exacerbated the damage.) However, thisdisaster enabled the city and the harbor districtto acquire state and federal emergency reliefand other funds to develop the harbor (RRMDesign Group 2006). The boat basin openedin 1968, and the development of associatedharbor infrastructure including offloadingdocks, fish processing and boat-buildingfacilities continued into the 1970s.Crescent City Fishing Community Profile 2
Crescent City Harbor Fishing Community Timeline1800s Local tribes’ first contact with European-Americans1850 Gold discovered on Trinity River1854 Crescent City incorporated1892 Point St. George Lighthouse built1923 Redwood Highway between Crescent City and Eureka completed1935 Crescent City Harbor District established1950 Citizen’s Dock built1964 Tsunami devastates harbor and town1970 Two processing plants and Del Norte Ice plants open1973 Inner boat basin completed1974 Boldt decision1976 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA)1977 Fashion Blacksmith opens at harbor1979 Klamath Management Zone (KMZ) established1980 Englund Marine opens1982 Salmon limited entry1982-83 El Niño1985 KMZ commercial salmon fishery closure1987 Ice plant opens on Citizen’s Dock1991 KMZ recreational salmon fishery closure1992 Wastewater Treatment Plant (WTP) opensKMZ recreational salmon fishery limited to 14 daysDungeness crab fishery moratorium on entry1993 Salmon re-allocation to tribes (50%)Coho retention prohibited in commercial fishery1994 Groundfish limited entrySalmon disasterCoho retention prohibited in KMZ recreational fisheryDel Norte Ice ceases operations1995 Dungeness crab limited entry1996 Sustainable Fisheries Act (MSA re-authorized)1998 Harbor district takes over WTP operations from cityMarine Life and Nearshore Fishery Management Acts1999 Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA)2000 Sea Products ceases operationsFederal groundfish disasterAlber Seafoods begins receiving and processing2001 Eureka Fisheries ceases operations2002 Nearshore Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) adoptedFirst federal Rockfish Conservation Area (RCA) established2003 Groundfish trawl buybackNearshore fishery restricted access2006 TsunamiKlamath salmon disaster2008 Statewide salmon disaster and fishery closureTrawl Individual Quota program approvedNorthern California shrimp trawl grounds closed2009 Statewide salmon disaster and fishery closureNorth Coast MLPA process beginsCrescent City Fishing Community Profile 3
Page 3 and 4: California’s North Coast Fishing
Page 8 and 9: along much of the North Coast, resu
Page 10 and 11: Recreational Fishing ActivityRecrea
Page 12 and 13: AcknowledgmentsWe gratefully acknow
Page 16 and 17: The Expansion of Commercial andRecr
Page 18 and 19: As of the late 1970s, recreational
Page 20 and 21: cut further for both limited entry
Page 22 and 23: The Crescent City Fishing Community
Page 24 and 25: Table 3. Seasonality of selected co
Page 26 and 27: Table 5. Seasonality of major recre
Page 28 and 29: shrimp trawlers and groundfish traw
Page 30 and 31: Pounds (millions)Ex-vessel value (2
Page 32 and 33: 1,2001,000800TotalGroundfish trawlS
Page 34 and 35: Pounds and ex-vessel value (million
Page 40 and 41: The number of boats participating i
Page 44 and 45: Table 13. Long-term and recent annu
Page 46 and 47: 1996 through 1998, and included bot
Page 48 and 49: Table 15. Major three- and four-way
Page 50 and 51: City boats and an increase in reven
Page 52 and 53: trips during the period 2003-2007.
Page 54 and 55: Table 18. Key factors and their eff
Page 56 and 57: Eureka and Trinidad, the decline in
Page 58 and 59: from 1987 until 1994, when the bloc
Page 60 and 61: The Harbor DistrictAs fishing activ
Page 62 and 63: Current Situation and OutlookCresce
Page 64 and 65:
Leidersdorf, C. 1975. Development o
Page 66 and 67:
Woodbury, D. 1999. Reduction of gro
Page 68 and 69:
16Although the trawl fishery for wh
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Crescent City Profile - California Sea Grant

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