Arks were floating cabins used by watermen as living quarters while they fished for shad and herring on the Chesapeake Bay, far away from home. As the fish made their spring run up the Bay, the watermen would follow, towing the arks behind their boats. When they reached the new fishing grounds, the arks were hauled out on land.
Sometimes a dozen or more arks would haul out in the same area, creating a "shanty town." In the fall or winter when the fishing season was over, arks were often used by oystermen and hunters. By the 1920s, with better roads and automobiles, making it easy for watermen to return home during fishing trips, the use of arks dwindled.
Built: Date and place unknown
Length: 12 ft, 0.5 in (3.67 m)
Beam: 7 ft, 1.5 in (2.18 m)
[Caption:]
Oystermen's ark village at the mouth of the Chester River, near Rock Hall, MD, c. 1895. Photographer unknown. Courtesy of the Enoch Pratt Free Library, Baltimore, MD.
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