History of the Eel Basket
The Eel Basket, Eel Trap, Eel Pot or Eel Fyke, all work on the same principle to catch the eel.
The American Eel (Anguilla Rostrata) grows and lives in the estuaries and freshwaters along the East Coast, where the larvae begins life in the Sargasso Sea off Bermuda. The quick-moving eel arrives in the Jersey estuaries in late winter.
The eel would swim into the long neck of the trap before being funneled into a second internal cone-shaped basket. Sprung, inward facing sharp twigs would expand just enough to allow the eel to enter the trap but made it difficult for the eel to escape.
One hot spot in New Jersey was the Tuckerton Creek. Rumor has it, it was hard for some baymen to resist the 'battle' over Tuckerton Creek, and others were contentious. Local baymen guarded "their" criks from outsiders, sometimes with shotguns!
Today, Mary May captures authentic New Jersey Basket designs in her work as a basket maker.
The Eel Basket, Eel Trap, Eel Pot or Eel Fyke, all work on the same principle to catch the eel.
The American Eel (Anguilla Rostrata) grows and lives in the estuaries and freshwaters along the East Coast, where the larvae begins life in the Sargasso Sea off Bermuda. The quick-moving eel arrives in the Jersey estuaries in late winter.
The eel would swim into the long neck of the trap before being funneled into a second internal cone-shaped basket. Sprung, inward facing sharp twigs would expand just enough to allow the eel to enter the trap but made it difficult for the eel to escape.
One hot spot in New Jersey was the Tuckerton Creek. Rumor has it, it was hard for some baymen to resist the 'battle' over Tuckerton Creek, and others were contentious. Local baymen guarded "their" criks from outsiders, sometimes with shotguns!
Today, Mary May captures authentic New Jersey Basket designs in her work as a basket maker.