Rachel Bellerby - Tracing Your Yorkshire Ancestors

Whitby Abbey, a spectacular location on Yorkshires east coast.

Before the eighteenth century, fish was a foodstuff reserved only for the wealthy and those who lived within a short distance of the sea. The prohibitive cost of transporting fish inland before it decayed meant that seafood prices were out of reach of the budget of ordinary families.

However, as the eighteenth century progressed and urban populations continued to climb, masses of people needed to be fed at a low cost. This is when fish began to be used more widely as a cheap and plentiful food source and fishermen came to find their services in great demand.

Trawler boats had always operated in the south of England, particularly around Devon and the Thames area and many made a good living supplying fish for London markets. Gradually, the trawlermen came further around the coast away from the Thames area towards the North Sea. Some of the men would stay away from their home for the entire fishing season, living in local lodgings and fishing every day.

In 1821, two fishing smacks set out on a trawling venture sponsored by the Hull Corporation and Colonel Ralph Creyke of Marton Hall. This was one of the first attempts to fish on a large scale off the coast of Yorkshire. Although the mens trawling gear was damaged during the trip, they felt that enough potential had come out of the expedition for it to be repeated.

The next few decades saw trawling take off in the East Yorkshire coastal areas. But when the trawlers landed at Scarborough to offload and sell their huge catches, they faced fierce opposition from local fisherman, jealous of their success and on several occasions were physically prevented from landing their catches in the town.

The trawlers moved to Hull, where they had a better reception and their fish was taken inland up the River Humber, eventually being particularly well received in Manchester. This was the first time that Manchester had received large consignments of fish to feed its population, which was growing hugely due to the jobs created by the Industrial Revolution.

The take off of the railways industry helped the fish trade to prosper, as for the first time perishable foodstuffs like fish could be transported quickly to the shops and markets where they were sold on. This stimulated the demand for trawlers and the lucrative trade brought in more fish than ever before. The years between 1840 and 1860 were particularly crucial in the growth of the trawling trade. This is shown by figures for the registration of fishing vessels in Hull. In 1840, there were seven fishing vessels registered in the town. Ten years later there were thirty-five, in 1860, the number had increased to 177 and by 1870 there were 250, with 400 just eight years later. It was estimated that, by 1883, the fish trade in Hull was worth over 1 million and employed over 2,000 people in the area.