Fishing+Industry

Michigan's Great Lakes are a main reason for industry. Hundreds of years ago, Native Americans started using the fish in the great lakes as a food source. There was an abundance of fish in the lakes at this time and was an easy source of food. Many tribes settled along rivers and banks because of this food source. Tribal Fisherman used big birchbark canoes and nets to cash such fish. The boom of the fishing industry was everywhere. Since Michigan is basically completely surrounded by water, many people were involved with this industry. For hundreds of years many Native American tribes like the Chippewa and Ojibwe Indians lived all around lake superior which helped them establish their villages and the fish from the lakes gave them a good supply of food. When European's came in, commercial fishing became very popular. As fishing became more and more popular, many species were being wiped out or declining. [|Fishing History] Indian's often used birch bark canoes for fishing or sometimes they used nets which were made of willow bark or twine. In the Northern areas of Michigan people would also go spear or ice fishing. [|Fishing History] The Bust of Fishing was bound to happen. Between 1820 and 1850, certain species of fish started dying out. New technology also was a part in the bust. With new advances, it also started to help decline the already dwindling numbers of certain fish. The glory days of commercial fishing mostly ended by the 1950s. Some main reasons for this were: The bust effected people in all areas that are surrounding the Great Lakes. Many people who were involved in the fishing industry soon had to change their way of life. Now fishing is more of a leisure activity and is not as big as it once was. The great abundance of fish in lake Michigan was going to be used as a food source obviously. There really wasn't much that could have been done because people were going to take advantage of this food source eventually. There is still many species of fish in lake Michigan, but not nearly as many as there was hundreds of years ago. Basically there is not as much of an abundance as there once was and species have been declining for many years now. I think that they could have limited the amount that they were fishing. There was certain treaties that were made later on to limit the amount of fish that were being brought in. I think that many people who started in the fishing industry early on took advantage of the amount of fish and they should have preserved the lakes and limited the amount they took in. One lesson learned was that we shouldn't take things for granted. If we wouldn't have been so greedy in the fishing industry maybe things would be different today. Things that are similar to what happened in the fishing industry for example is like the oil industry. People are taking advantage of oil and think that it is going to last forever; just like people in the fishing industry did. There isn't going to be an abundance of fish, or oil for that matter, forever. We need to only use what we need and not overuse our resources.
 * Why the boom?**
 * Where?**
 * Who?**
 * How?**
 * Why the Bust?**
 * overfishing
 * pollution
 * habitat destruction
 * invasive species
 * Where?**
 * Who?**
 * How?**
 * What is left?**
 * What could have been done differently?**
 * What lessons were learned?**

Rachael Sakowski's Additions Michigan's early fishing industry was no doubt very successful. There were vast amounts of many diverse species, and it was an easy way to supply Native American tribes with food. The fishing industry not only boomed in Michigan, but also in other areas surrounding the Great Lakes. The boom of the fishing industry in Michigan lasted only until around the mid 19th century. By then, problems such as overfishing and extinction of species had surfaced. This affected Native Americans and Michigan residents, as they had to change their lifestyles and fishing habits. Since there is not as much of an abundance of fish now rather than what there was 200 years ago, fishing is now viewed as a sport and leisure activity. Fishing is not taken as seriously as an industry, but as a game sport. [|History of Michigan's Fishing Industry]