Rockport's Seafood Industry

Rockport's Seafood Industry (HM10D7)

Location: Rockport, TX 78382 Aransas County
Buy Texas State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 28° 1.532', W 97° 3.004'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 842 views
Inscription
Rockport's commercial seafood companies have been operating for more than one hundred years. By 1903, David Rockport Scrivner had opened a fish house. In 1907, he sold to Roy Jackson who named the operation the Jackson Fish Company. A few years later, Luis Cobilini and a Mr. Gentry began the Union Fish Company. Cobilini later sold the firm to Ernest Camehl. The 1919 hurricane destroyed the Union Fish building, but Camehl rebuilt and, in 1932, the building became a ship's chandlery.

About 1909, Charlie Gibson established the Rockport Fish and Oyster Company, which sold Mesquite Bay oysters. Its building stood on pilings over Aransas Bay. Most of the early fish companies had their own fleet of boats for catching fish in nets, but they would also buy from local fishermen. On many days and nights, Rockport's fishing companies shipped dozens of barrels of fish by rail. In 1907, the State of Texas established regulations to stop overfishing, and the local industry declined.

In 1919, Ford Jackson bought his brother's interest in the Jackson Fish Company and changed the name to Jackson Seafood Company. Jackson added shrimp to his harvest, and the local shrimping industry developed rapidly after 1925. By 1935, Travis Johnson and Charles Picton founded the Johnson Fish company; shrimp was its main product.

After hurricane Celia in 1970, Jackson Seafood diversified by harvesting sea scallops on the East Coast. Although the company closed in 1991, other Rockport firms, including several owned and operated by Vietnamese immigrants, have continued harvesting fish and shrimp.
Details
HM NumberHM10D7
Tags
Marker Number7
Year Placed2011
Placed ByVisionaries in Preservation, Aransas County Historical Society, Inc., Texas Historical Foundation, Texas Tropical Trail/Texas Historical Commission, Aransas County Historical Commission, City of Rockport, and Margaret Sue Rust Foundation
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Tuesday, October 14th, 2014 at 6:43pm PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)14R E 691697 N 3101563
Decimal Degrees28.02553333, -97.05006667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 28° 1.532', W 97° 3.004'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds28° 1' 31.92" N, 97° 3' 0.24" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)361
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 108-110 E Concho St, Rockport TX 78382, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. This marker needs at least one picture.
  8. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  9. Is the marker in the median?