Back in the late 1960s, my father went scalloping with Willard Nickerson in Chatham, Massachusetts. Willard Nickerson was a third generation fisherman, whose family started Nickerson Fish and Lobster, and was the only person who could make my father eat raw scallops. And those familiar with the history of Cape Cod know that Chatham was first settled in 1664 by William Nickerson.
Here are some of my father's photos.
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| Of course there are Crown Pilot crackers. |
As with hunting dogs, decoys, sailboats, pheasants, anchors, nautical knots and charts, and whales, scallop shells have become such iconic motifs that they can easily drift into pure mall store ether. So it is nice to return to source and tap the reality of the attributes they represent - productive, tough, outdoor, active, and natural- rather than just accept others' commercial attempt to turn them into exactly the opposite.
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| (And yes, I recognize the similarity in hats between this entry and the last.) |
50 comments:
As always, the photos are great. I know I'll be skewered for this, but I enjoy scallops more than lobster or shrimp with them prepared in any fashion (except raw). The question is were you talked into eating scallops raw?
Raw scallops! That's brave. Photos are great. The bay scallop beds here are finally recovering, as evidenced by the hundreds of once-rare shells I collected over the past few months. So much so that I'm considering getting the gear and harvesting some myself. I agree with Dave's preference for scallops over lobster or shrimp (though I love all three)--particularly baked scallops, a truly classic and delicious dish.
Nice picture!! Thanks very much. Off the subject, I have a question for you, which is about men's tie. I normally wear repp ties (J. press, Brooks, and Polo), but recently, I heard about silk knit tie (navy) being a very essential part of Ivy look. I just want to know about your thought on that, please.
I do hope these photos are framed. They are timeless, classic and so New England. Wonderful. Would you mind sharing your favorite recipe for scallops?
pve
Another great set of photos, but my favorite is towards the end of the series of the old guys just standing there--sooooo 60's! Thanks again for sharing more of your dad's photos.
It seems unnecessary to comment on the beautiful quality of the photos. I especially like the ones that feature the scallops themselves.
In Taiwan, scallops are usually eaten dried, each wrapped in cellophane like pieces of candy.
So often we don't know where our food comes from. We just pop into the grocery store and pick something up. I think what I like most about Muffy's blog is that gentle reminder that there are real people making a real difference in the quality of life they have. It's that self reliance and can do spirit that makes America great. What beautiful pictures, thank you for sharing them.
It's interesting how different the Northeast is from the midwest.
The good old days when men smoked pipes(or cigars). Still love the smell of pipe and cigar smoke! Reminds me of my grandpa.
No matter what one's eventual career path, I have always felt it's very important to spend some time, maybe during college summers, to do something REAL. I got to go commercial fishing, one of a very few women who did at the time, and Muffy's pictures here really take me back. A connection to nature, forged in hard work, stays with you for life. I fear for the future should we ever lose this . . .
From a Nantucket guy --
Your father would find it much the same in Nantucket today. Sure, the boats have changed a bit, but the process hasn't nor has the grip of scalloping on the sense of the community. It's one of the places where natives and whatever you call summer people who stayed on meet in a shared pursuit.
We have "family scalloping" in October, where individuals with waders and rakes can take modest amounts for family and friends, then the commercial season from November through March.
Bay scallops from the Cape and Islands and some parts of Long Island Sound are the finest in the world, tiny and sweet and delicious raw or quickly sauteed.
Yields vary wildly from year to year, and we go from despair over the end of scalloping forever to complaints about the price of scallops falling when the yield is high. It was ever thus and will be forever.
We take scalloping seriously. Last August, I saw some summer visitors on Millie's Bridge in Madaket crabbing, fine and dandy, but the bottom of the cooler was filled with out of season scallops. Next day, I asked the Harbor Master what to do if I saw something similar again: "Call 911immediately" was the unhesitating response.
Your blog has covered many traditional New England industries such as organic farming, apparel, shoe making and fishing. Sadly, many of these industries are dying due to an unreasonable regulatory environment, higher taxes, red tape, etc. which make it prohibitively expensive to operate as businesses.
The last thing I want to see is Monsanto Farms of New England, Walmart Bean, Goldman Sea Foods or Guangdong Shoes of Maine. But I think its already happening, slowly but surely.
Are scallops still as plentiful as they were when these pictures were taken? Or are they being farmed like the oysters here in the Chesapeake Bay?
Still love to visit the Chatham Fish Pier (though not in the summer).
The fish pier looks pretty much the same today as in the photos although it has the observation deck now. You can still find all of the old plywood (lumberyard) workboats complete with sorting tables and black labs there today. I'll bet some of those motors are even in operation still. Some of those must have been bran new when those photos were taken. I saw a 67 johnson there.
To answer the question about aqua culture, the scallops are wild although they were pretty scarce a few years ago. They're well regulated now and are making a comeback from overfishing. In other parts of Chatham than where those pictures were taken there are tons and a pretty good commercial fishery exists.
I should also add that raw scallops are delicious. I think very few people eat them because you can really only buy them shucked and they're really best eaten right off of the half shell when you shuck them.
I love scallops, and haven't had any in a while. This post serves as a good reminder for the next time I shop. I just made a flounder casserole the other day, and that has held me for seafood this week.
The photos are wonderful. There is such great contrast in his B&W photos -- well done!
I knew some Nickersons when I was growing up in Pembroke, perhaps a branch of the Chatham Nickersons...
Thanks for sharing this view of the New England seafood tradition. Today, I blogged about running across the use of Irish Moss in an old New England cookbook(a type of seaweed used for medicinal and culinary purposes) which can be found in New England. I had never heard of it, but I will be looking for it in the coming weeks and months. Have you ever run across its use?
Simply wonderful. Such photos are familiar to those of us who live in the Chesapeake Bay area (though the catch is always oysters or crabs).
By the way, what the "C" on his cap stand for?
Beautiful. Look forward to scallops this summer, both lightly fried and grilled. For winter, scallops ccooked in a shell, wrapped in bacon, lightly coated with shredded gruyere.
Wonderful pictures. Love that black lab in the boat.
The last photo is a fantastic portrait. The C on the hat most certainly stands for Classic.
"Of course there are Crown Pilot crackers"; perfect! I love it!
I really wish Nabisco would bring these back! Great pictures, Muffy.
Wonderful. Now I'm hungry for scallops!
How great Nickerson's boat is named "Katrinka", a Dutch name meaning "pure".
Labs were bred in Newfoundland originally to assist commercial fisherman so good to see one sort of on the job...
The Book, Muffy, THE BOOK???
It just occurred to me that you and your Dad are both avid photojournalistic sociologists. He documented his unique New England life and you are doing the same.
It's wonderful. Especially for a NY'er in Northern California who always needs a fix of the North East!
my guess is the c is for the Chatham 'A's" ( the baseball tem" or chatham hs
@ Anonymous who said...
It's interesting how different the Northeast is from the midwest.
March 13, 2013 at 8:45 AM
I know it is, but how exactly, in your words? I am soon moving to the midwest for my husband's job--help prepare me, please! Thanks, and to others too for chiming in!
To anonymous asking about Midwest. A lot of it depends on which state you are moving to.
For the most part you'll find Midwesterners to be very good, hard-working lovely people. They are very accepting of 'outsiders' and they have a gentle curiosity of people who are from other areas.
However there are some differences that you need to know if you are a New Englander moving not only to the Midwest but anywhere south of Maryland.
People dress nicer, the ladies do their hair and makeup (and not just lipstick). You may see 'newer' clothes. The yards will be neater and probably more manicured than what you'll see elsewhere. To not have everything (including yourself) not looking nice is considered a sign of disrespect.
If you're moving to a rural area don't expect that you're going to see 'poor' farmers. It's an oxymoron in the Midwest. You will rarely see a farmer/rancher in blue jeans but if you do I guarantee it will be an OCBD and jeans neatly starched.
Once again, for the 'most' part these people have not one ounce of pretension. You'll find the person you least expect is probably the person/family that does the most for the community. Speaking of community, midwesterners are big on watching out for their neighbor.
Unfortunately, I'm afraid you'll miss your 'fresh seafood'. But depending once again on where you'll be if there is a large lake nearby you will find sailboats. Yes, I know it won't be 'the same' but hey, lake sailing is better than no sailing I would think.
Go with an open mind. I hope you make new friends and adjust to your surroundings and even grow to like it.
To Anon 12:46: You might have just stuck with midwesterners being "hard-working people". To directly insult the host of the blog while praising others as "good" and "lovely" inevitably undermines your judgement.
Great pictures. Black and white captures the day so nicely. And I do love those scallops! Perhaps a stop at the market on the way home for some is in order...... Enjoy your weekend, Muffy! --Holly in PA
Curiosity has won over embarrassment: WHO is your father??????
Perhaps the "C" stands for Columbia or Cornell (sorry, Ferd)or Colgate or Choate or Canterbury or...
--Cash Bentley
Great photos! Your dear Dad was of a great generation. The greatest generation! Thank you for sharing them.
I would just add that we midwesterners never capitalized the word. It was the dominance of Microsoft Word and it's automatic spell check function that capitalized it for us. To my eye, it loses some import: the midwest is a flat place and a flat word is a good way to help describe it.
I think plainness and straightforwardness are very big in the midwest. Goopiness comes across as weird. We "miss out" on some of the California trends, or they make an appearance a couple of years after the fact. . . which, given California trends, ain't necessarily a bad thing.
Understatement and perhaps even underconfidence (not a lot of yapping about yourself) are what I find. Chicago, the Twin Cities, Milwaukee are wonderful places, and I always think there are parts of Wisconsin that qualify as simple Utopias.
Anonymous 1:40 Please tell how our midwestern friend "directly" insulted Muffy in their post? I just don't see it.
My family used to have a place on Shelter Island where bay scallops washed up on the beach (pre-red tide). I'd eat them raw, and 20 years later my fish monger (Bridgeport/Westport Lobster Co.) knows to inform me if they are day or week boat Stonington scallops, because I'll eat 1/2 of them in driving home.
Rachel, it's not obvious? Let's start with the difference between New Englanders and Midwesterners? Midwesterners dress "nicer" and that includes "not just lipstick".
Then there is the "disrespect" that would apparently be shown if you or your yard looked like New England or a New Englander.
While I have always thought highly of midwesterners, perhaps especially their family values, it is not a place I would turn to for taste - strip malls and pressed jeans.
Anonymous at 6:39. Just have to say that, unfortunately, strip malls and big box stores are basically taking over most of the country. One of the fascinating things I find about NE is that doesn't yet seem to be the case there.
In regards to your comment about pressed jeans. That's a regional difference and doesn't have anything to do with "taste". The only way I would go out of the house without my clothes ironed would be in the case of an extreme emergency.
Could someone please point me to a blog that shows off the best of midwestern tastes? Thanks!
Anonymous 8:41... Check out midwestwasp.tumblr
And Muffy there are several pictures of you on this photo blog.
Hi everyone, thanks for your thoughts. It sounds like the Midwest will be very nice. We will be in Wisconsin. I don't think it will be forever, and I'm looking forward to being there (it's being away from family that is the main drawback). Born and raised in the Northeast, I am a lake person, and I'm excited about exploring Door County and the Northern part of the state. I'm worried about the skiing...but cheered by how much closer we will be to the west. Driving distance to Montana--that's a great thing!
Maybe the Midwest will be a good place for me, because I did not read the first response in this chain as insulting either. It sounded more like observations, and I found it informative and thank the person who wrote it. While it was written in comparison to NE, it did not sound like a knock on NE to me. Maybe *I* was supposed to feel insulted--that my initial question was read as sounding superior and incurious (which was not my intent at all of course). But I don't think so. My husband and I are both looking forward to our move and I considered my inquiry part of my information gathering before we head out there, and definitely in the spirit of curiosity of what this community thinks.
So, with much sincerity, thanks!
Yours,
CWS
Really, Muffy, where is the book on your father's photographs?
Best,
Allegra
great photos...thanks for sharing.
Oh my! I am the original anonymous that posted the differences about the midwest (not capitalized this time).
I absolutely meant no disrespect to Muffy whatsoever. But the fact is that in SOME parts of the midwest (I don't know about Wisconsin where the reader is moving), they do dress 'nicer'. Meaning, when they go out they tend to dress 'up' more.
In some areas, 'casual' means something completely different. In my particular area (Illinois and Indiana)you just tend to see 'dressier' clothes. And you will see more makeup - tastefully done - but you'll see the whole kit-n-caboodle (midwest word). Foundations, mascara, lipstick.
Regions are ALL different and have different customs, cultures, values, style.
Muffy, I offended you please accept my apology.
@Anonymous 7:04 - Not at all! But thank you for such a lovely "non-necessary" apology!!
Dear Anonymous moving to Wisconsin: Lots of lakes for you. I have happy friends in WI. Madison is great, Milwaukee is interesting, although it has fallen upon hard times. Upper Wisconsin is reserved -- New England's reserve is different. N.E.'s is a social or civic reserve, whereas there isn't much of a civic life in the Midwest (except for major cities like Chicago) -- it is much more family-oriented, meaning people tend to socialize within extended-family groups (and also church. Church is huge here. Religion is a central part of people's lives here -- you won't know what that means until you leave the Northeast). I say this as an exiled New Englander. I have spent half my life in Massachusetts and half in IL and MI. Regarding an earlier response: I have not seen evidence that people dress better here. They dress more, perhaps: more makeup, more styled hair,more nail paint, more trendy (as per department store trends). It is very different here. There will be a culture shock. As a Bostonian, I have much more in common with, say, British people than with Midwesterners. But everything depends on the individual. Good luck to you -- I hope you are happy in your new home.
Dear Muffy,
These are beautiful photos. Thank you for sharing them. I agree with an earlier poster: Time for a book of these photographs.
Incredible pictures. Quintessential New England! Thanks for sharing!
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