Preparing to go fishing

While I still have a lot to do on my copper smelter module, I need to start work on the next module which will lead from the smelter to the nearest town, because the lake water level will extend onto a least part of this second module. However, being that scratch building structures is my favorite part of the hobby, I have decided to start work of a small commercial operation which will be located on the outskirts of the small town.Digging into my research files, I started to put together a group of "must have" elements for inclusions in my interpretation.

As shown in this photo of an unidentified fishing operation on the Canadian side of the Great Lakes, fishing villages consisted of a rag-tag assembly of structures loosely arranged around the dock at which the fish tugs would tie up to discharge and process their huge catches..

I have been visiting historic "Fishtown" in Leland, Michigan ever since I moved to the US in 1973, and have always really enjoyed the ambiance there. This building with its three gables has always piqued my interest, and I inclusion of such a structure was critical to add a true sense of reality to my scene, even if space confinements ended up forcing me to take some steps to compress the structure on my interpretation.

As shown here, net drying racks have always been an integral part of Great Lakes fishing villages, with all of them seemingly being built to the same plan all around the lakes. These particular large array of racks was located on the Canadian side of the lakes.

This net drying rack can be found in Michigan's Fishtown, mentioned in the caption of a prior photo. The similarity of construction to the Canadian drying racks in the prior photo is immediately evident. Including at least a couple of these drying racks will be a must to properly set the stage in my village interpretation, and this photo gives a good idea of how they were built..

Because the fish was sold fresh, salted and smoked, the inclusion of at least one smoke house would be vital. This small concrete block smoke house which is still in use in Fishtown could serve as a good guide as to how to put one together for my village.  This photo also gives a hint of how tall such a structure would be when compared with the adjoining structure and the net drying rack behind it.

Fish Tugs have served as the go-to vessel for commercial fishing operations since the early 1900's, with their design changing very little over the years. They all feature enclosed superstructures and openings for letting out and retrieving the fishing nets without the men being washed off the decks in doing so.

Frequently equipped with the reliable Kahlenberg diesel engines, the stalwart fish tugs fished Great Lakes waters throughout the year, their heavy iron hulls allowing them to smash their way through all but the thickest ice, as shown here.  Including a model of at least one of these vessels tied up at the dock would be a real necessity.

OK! - so now I have decided somewhat of an idea as to how my fishing village would look,it's time to get to the workbench and start bringing it to reality!