Welcome to the exhibit on the watery creatures we eat, whether pulled wild from the sea or farmed closer to home. Fish have bones, gills and fins, shellfish have shells. Swordfish, tuna, trout, bass, bluefish, flounder and many others swim into the fish family. Shellfish further divide up into mollusks and crustaceans. Mollusks include abalone, clams and squid. Crab, lobster and shrimp are crustaceans. There are more and we eat them all.

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Abalone
Anchovy
Bass
Carp
Catfish
Caviar
Char
Clams
Cockle
Cod
Conch
Crab
Crayfish
Eel
Flatfish
Haddock
Herring
Lobster
Mackerel
Mussels
Octopus
Oysters
Perch
Pike
Prawns
Salmon
Sardine
Scallop
Shad
Shrimp
 Squid
Sturgeon
Swordfish
Tilapia
Trout
Tuna
Whale
Whelk



"The Admiral" is a painting of seafood arranged to form a man's head, by 17th century Italian artist Guiseppe Arcimboldo. (Published in The Life and Works of Arcimboldo by Diana Craig. NY Smithmark, 1996. Hughes Food History Archives)

Spearing was one of the earliest ways of catching fish. This drawing of a Northwest Indian is by Roger Vernam. It was published in Watlala---An Indian Boy of the Northwest in 1935. (Hughes Food History Archives)



People catch fish with nets all over the world. Here Nigerians participate in a fishing festival. In the water they hold their catch in hollowed gourds that float beside them. (Photo by Alan Hutchison and published in Atlas of Man, Hughes Food History Archives)



This Thai fisherman doll demonstrates another way to catch fish, using traps. The fish swim in and can't get out. (Hughes Food History Archives)



An unusual method of catching fish is still practiced in east Asia, especially China and Japan. Fisherman tame cormorants, diving birds, to fish for them. People tie a string around the birds' necks to prevent them from swallowing the fish. The fisherman go out at night in boats with lights attached to the bow to attract the fish. (Hughes Food History Archives)


Processing the catch has always been a labor intensive activity. (Hughes Food History Archives)



Fishing with a hook attached to a line on a stick has always been an effective way to catch one fish at a time. Now it is used mostly by sports fishermen. (Hughes Food History Archives)




Just a few of the many fish used for food. (Hughes Food History Archives)