In the 1800s Hudson’s Bay Company posts on the north shore of Lake Superior developed diverse fisheries based on a complex association of species and stocks, especially lake trout, whitefish, and herring. In part learning from First Nations populations, the fishermen gained sophisticated understanding of the seasonal and spatial occurrences of the fish. Trading post factors maintained detailed records of natural and cultural phenomena, including data on fish and fishing.

Commercial fishing interests on Canadian Lake Superior expanded rapidly from the 1850s. This story is also marked by the increasing involvement and eventual dominance of American enterprises, notably the Booth Fisheries company.

Also presented here are record notes (page 6) assembled for a Master’s thesis at the University of Toronto that investigated the lake trout stocks existing in Canadian Lake Superior, prior to 1955 and the subsequent ecological devastation caused by introduction of the exotic sea lamprey (page 8). Additional work was performed for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources to assemble the fish stocking history of Lake Superior.