New Publication from the Chatham Historical Society Beyond the Bar: The Perilous Journey Three Centuries of Fishing in Chatham Massachusetts by Robert D. B. Carlisle Published by Chatham Historical Society Chatham Massachusetts July 2007 $29.95 Reaching back across three centuries, Beyond the Bar: The Perilous Journey traces the growth, change, and ever-larger challenge confronting the commercial fishing industry in Chatham, Cape Cod. Through that span of time, the port of Chatham has become one of the most important fishing sites in all New England. Yet, it is troubled as it has never been before. In contrast to the old days, when a man fished only with baited hooks, methods have been upgraded in remarkable ways. Electronics, added universally in the decades since World War II, now enable a boat to home in on a school of fish at a precise location. Gilinetting and bottom trawling have caught greater and greater amounts of species off the coastline. But commercial fishermen have done too good a job, and today, some of the once-limitless species, such as cod, yellow-tail flounder and haddock, are severely diminished. A whole industry faces a crisis. Confronted by this situation, lifelong fishermen have either been forced to come ashore into alien fields of work, or have turned to the still-productive shellfish flats that ring Chatham on many sides. Government at various levels has ordered regulations intended to help fish stocks rebuild. As a sequel to these governmental efforts, the Cape Cod Commercial Hook Fishermen's Association was formed sixteen years ago. It has gained wide recognition for its species-protecting activities. Regardless, the work to revive fin fish off Cape Cod's coast will unquestionably take years. Dozens of men and women from Chatham and nearby - veteran fishermen all - have been trying to adjust to this reality. Their experiences and outlooks are described on these pages. They are a remarkable breed: independent, hard-working, ready to take life-threatening risks, yet faced with figuring out how to survive year in, year out. One point is certain: They all know that beyond Chatham's savage bar at the main harbor's channel to the sea, the journey is perilous. Order from the Museum Store