Stonington Fishing Fleet

"I was proud of my work. And the buildings went up. When they were finished the damnedest thing happened. It was like the buildings were too good for us. Nobody told us that,...it just felt uncomfortable, that's all."

Paul Dooley in Breaking Away, 1979

These are hard times for commercial fishermen. Depleted fishing stocks, regulations, expensive waterfront real estate, high fuel costs, and foreign competition have all made this a difficult way to earn a living. It is a way of life that is glorified in movies and cable television shows, but like the farms on Long Island's east end, and much of Main Street-America, it is dying a slow death.

In his book In The Village (1971), Anthony Bailey described Stonington as a place where "the old know the young, the rich know the poor, the year-rounders know the summer people---and the man you hoot at in town meeting might be your boss."

Stonington still has a Main Street, but the borough has been gentrified, and fishermen no longer live in the homes that line the narrow lanes. Sometimes, this is just a case of simple economics. But in other cases, there seems to be additional factors at work.

 It is the fishing that gave Stonington its unique appeal, and distinguished it from the other cute New England towns. It is that appeal that has drawn people here. The flip side is that fishing also brings large trucks rolling through town, foul odors, and early morning noise. People who were originally attracted to the charm, view these aspects as a nuisance. The fishing industry becomes secondary to the real estate and boutique industry.

To its credit, Stonington has worked hard to preserve the last remaining commercial fleet in Connecticut. The docks are publicly accessible, and a Blessing Of the Fleet is held every summer.
If you visit, it is important to be careful. This is a working waterfront and one needs to be aware of their surroundings. Be respectful, and stay out of their way. These men have a job to do, and they are not there as a tourist attraction.

Blessing Of The Fleet
Stonington Historical Society: Portuguese Fishermen
CT Coastal Access: Town Docks and Memorial
Mystic Seaport: Stonington Oral History Project
NY Times: And The Fleet Will Fish (1994)
Map

credit: Breaking Away; Twentieth Century Fox, 1979
credit: In The Village; Anthony Bailey; Knopf, New York 1971

Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound

I see it as it looked one afternoon In August, 
by a fresh soft breeze o'erblown
The swiftness of the tide,
 the light thereon A far off sail,
 white as a crescent moon
The shining waters with pale currents strewn
The quiet fishing shacks, the Eastern cove
The semi-circle of its dark green cove
The luminous grasses,
 and the merry sun
In the grave sky, 
the sparkle far and wide
Laughter of unseen children,
 cheerful chirps Of crickets,
 and low lisp of rippling tide
Light summer clouds
 fantastical as sleep
Changing un-noted,
 while I gaze thereon
All these fair sounds and sights
 I made my own

Emma Lazarus (1849-1887)

NPR: Poet Of the Huddled Masses
Poem Hunter: Emma Lazarus 
Jewish Virtual Library Biography

Research Vessel Seawolf

Stony Brook University, School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Research Vessel Sea Wolf, Port Jefferson Harbor, January 2009 RV Seawolf Stony Brook University: School of Atmospheric Sciences Seawolf: Specifications Flickr: Seawolf at Sunset

Pelham Cemetery , City Island

When I was about seven years old, my family and I went to visit my grandfather in Vermont one winter. I can't recall a lot of the details from the vacation, but there is something that happened during the trip that I remember to this day. Our green Buick station-wagon loaded down with kids, luggage and a dog, made its way through the depressed towns of upstate New York that straddle New England, until we reached Hoosick Falls. Just outside of town, a traffic jam had formed on a desolate stretch of abandoned farmhouses and shuttered Dairy-Queen type businesses. I don't know how long we sat in traffic, but we eventually crawled along and reached a bridge that spans the Hoosac River, where a cop directing traffic informed my father that two kids had fallen through the ice. The following day, the newspapers reported that the two young boys had drowned. There were photos of them on the front page. They were about my age. Thirty years later, I was spending a lot of time in City Island. I kept my boat there and had gotten to know many of the residents who inhabit this small island that is connected to the Bronx by a bridge and taxes. On a January night while I was flying to San Diego, four young men decided to row a small boat from City Island over to neighboring Hart Island, a potters field for the City of New York. Their boat took on water, and a 911 distress call was the last words heard from them. A day later, a guitar belonging to one of the teenagers was found in this cemetery. This made national news in a limited way. I remember reading a small story about it in the Los Angeles Times. My flight home approached LaGuardia Airport right above this small body of water that separates the two islands, and the two graveyards. As spring approached, a hovering helicopter was an indication that another body had been recovered. I did not know these young men, but I have heard many good things about them. They unfortunately made a stupid mistake, and it cost them their lives. Pelham Cemetery sits on the eastern shore of City Island, with Hart Island in the distance. A sort of morbid version of the Haves looking out at the Have-Nots. The Remembered looking out at The Forgotten. New York Times: Search Effort Fails To Find Four Teens Kingston Lounge: Hart Island (photos) The Hart Island Project Map

Stonington Lobster Boat

Stonington Harbor, March 2009

Long Neck Point From Contentment Island

Long Neck Point From Contentment Island John Frederick Kensett (1816-1872) Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Antiques & The Arts Online: John Kensett And the Connecticut Shore

Dredging The Nissequogue

Nissequogue River dredging project, Kings Park, January 2009 Map