Make and Break Harbour

Last updated
"Make and Break Harbour"
Song by Stan Rogers
from the album Fogarty's Cove
LanguageEnglish
Released1976
Genre Folk
Length4:27
Label Barn Swallow Records
Songwriter(s) Stan Rogers

"Make and Break Harbour" is a song by the Canadian folk singer Stan Rogers, first recorded as the 11th track on the album Fogarty's Cove in 1976. Standing with a significant portion of Rogers' work, the song features two common themes found within his other work: life on the sea and the endangered traditions that life encompasses.

Themes

"Make and Break Harbour" is about the dying of fishing traditions [1] and the importance of the two-stroke [2] one-piston inboard engines (known as the Make and Break engine or the "one-lunger") that Atlantic Canadian fishing communities used. The one-piston style engine was an important piece of technology featured on inboard motors for small fishing vessels that dot the Atlantic Canadian coastline. These engines served an important role in the history of the Atlantic fisheries. [3] Throughout the song Rogers talks of the dying traditions associated within those small communities. Rogers cites some of the reasons for the loss of tradition with lines such as "And the young folk don't stay with the fisherman's way/Long ago they all moved to the cities" and "Now I can see the big draggers that stirred up the bay/Leaving lobster traps smashed on the bottom/And they think it don't pay to respect the old ways/That make and break men have not forgotten".

"Make and Break Harbour" also has a commentary on the overfishing that happened with the introduction of fishing trawlers in Atlantic Canada. These trawlers would not only destroy lobster traps as the lyrics above show, but would also overfish, and outfish the fisherman who remained with the one-piston engine. The inshore fish stocks started to decline with the introduction of domestic and foreign trawlers. [4] From 1958 through 'til 1974 the cod industry was in severe decline. Coinciding with the overfishing and decline of cod was the decline in cod fishermen and the yearly catch per fisherman. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Banks of Newfoundland</span> Group of underwater plateaus south-east of Newfoundland, Canada

The Grand Banks of Newfoundland are a series of underwater plateaus south-east of the island of Newfoundland on the North American continental shelf. The Grand Banks are one of the world's richest fishing grounds, supporting Atlantic cod, swordfish, haddock and capelin, as well as shellfish, seabirds and sea mammals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georges Bank</span> Oceanic bank in the North Atlantic

Georges Bank is a large elevated area of the sea floor between Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia (Canada). It separates the Gulf of Maine from the Atlantic Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turbot War</span> International dispute between Canada and Spain

The Turbot War was an international fishing dispute and bloodless conflict between Canada and Spain and their respective supporters.

"Barrett's Privateers" is a modern folk song in the style of a sea shanty, written and performed by Canadian musician Stan Rogers, having been inspired after a song session with the Friends of Fiddler's Green at the Northern Lights Festival Boréal in Sudbury, Ontario. Although Barrett, the Antelope and other specific instances mentioned in the song are fictional, "Barrett's Privateers" is full of many authentic details of privateering in the late 18th century.

"The Cliffs of Baccalieu" is a Newfoundland song written by Jack Withers (1899-1964). Many fisherman from Newfoundland spent their summers fishing on the Labrador coast. This song depicts a tense incident for a ship coming home from Labrador on its way to either Carbonear or St. John's with its fishing crew. The ship is caught in a gale as it nears Baccalieu Island. The vessel in the song is obviously a schooner, and it would have been burdened by a full load of salt cod caught along the Labrador coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anchor Point, Newfoundland and Labrador</span> Town in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Anchor Point is a town located in St. Barbe Bay, south of Flower's Cove on the west side of the Great Northern Peninsula, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It was the first English settlement on what is called the 'French Shore' of Newfoundland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conche, Newfoundland and Labrador</span> Town in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Conche is a community on the Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Its population in 2021 was 149.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Newfoundland and Labrador</span> History of a geographical region

The province of Newfoundland and Labrador covers the period from habitation by Archaic peoples thousands of years ago to the present day.

Fair Island, also called Vere Island, is a former community on the northeast coast of the island of Newfoundland. Together with other nearby communities it comprises an area called Bonavista North. These communities have a shared history in that they were settled by people from England, predominantly from the West Country - Dorset, Devon Somerset and Hampshire.

<i>The End of the Line</i> (book) Book by Charles Clover

The End of the Line: How Overfishing Is Changing the World and What We Eat is a book by journalist Charles Clover about overfishing. It was made into a movie released in 2009 and was re-released with updates in 2017.

Harry's Harbour is a local service district and designated place in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is southeast of Baie Verte.

This page is a list of fishing topics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cod fishing in Newfoundland</span>

Cod fishing in Newfoundland was carried out at a subsistence level for centuries, but large scale fishing began shortly after the European arrival in the North American continent in 1492, with the waters being found to be preternaturally plentiful, and ended after intense overfishing with the collapse of the fisheries in 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Collapse of the Atlantic northwest cod fishery</span> Result of a 1992 Canadian government moratorium to preserve oceanic biomass

In 1992, Northern Cod populations fell to 1% of historical levels, due in large part to decades of overfishing. The Canadian Federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, John Crosbie, declared a moratorium on the Northern Cod fishery, which for the preceding 500 years had primarily shaped the lives and communities of Canada's eastern coast. A significant factor contributing to the depletion of the cod stocks off Newfoundland's shores was the introduction of equipment and technology that increased landed fish volume. From the 1950s onwards, new technology allowed fishers to trawl a larger area, fish more in-depth, and for a longer time. By the 1960s, powerful trawlers equipped with radar, electronic navigation systems, and sonar allowed crews to pursue fish with unparalleled success, and Canadian catches peaked in the late-1970s and early-1980s. Cod stocks were depleted at a faster rate than could be replenished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cod fisheries</span> Fisheries for cod

Cod fisheries are fisheries for cod. Cod is the common name for fish of the genus Gadus, belonging to the family Gadidae, and this article is confined to three species that belong to this genus: the Atlantic cod, the Pacific cod and the Greenland cod. Although there is a fourth species of the cod genus Gadus, Alaska pollock, it is commonly not called cod and therefore currently not covered here.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing in Cornwall</span> Economic activity

Fishing in Cornwall, England, UK, has traditionally been one of the main elements of the economy of the county. Pilchard fishing and processing was a thriving industry in Cornwall from around 1750 to around 1880, after which it went into an almost terminal decline. During the 20th century the varieties of fish taken became much more diverse and crustaceans such as crab and lobster are now significant. Much of the catch is exported to France due to the higher prices obtainable there. Though fishing has been significantly damaged by overfishing, the Southwest Handline Fishermen's Association has started to revive the fishing industry. As of 2007, stocks were improving. The Cornwall Sea Fisheries Committee is one of 12 committees responsible for managing the corresponding Sea Fisheries District. The Isles of Scilly Sea Fisheries Committee is responsible for the Scilly district.

Ethnoichthyology is an area in anthropology that examines human knowledge of fish, the uses of fish, and importance of fish in different human societies. It draws on knowledge from many different areas including ichthyology, economics, oceanography, and marine botany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yorkshire coast fishery</span> History of sea fishing in Yorkshire, England

The Yorkshire coast fishery has long been part of the Yorkshire economy for centuries. The 114-mile (183 km) Yorkshire Coast, from the River Tees to the River Humber, has many ports both small and large where the fishing trade thrives. The historic ports at Hull and Whitby are important locations for the landing and processing of fish and shellfish. Scarborough and Bridlington are also sites of commercial fishing.

Bernard Martin is a Canadian fisherman and environmentalist. He was awarded the Goldman Prize in 1999.

Caplin Cove-Southport is a local service district and designated place in Trinity Bay in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Caplin Cove-Southport is approximately 50 km from Clarenville.

References

  1. Watts, David B. "Creativity and Mourning In The Work of Stan Rogers" Canadian Folk Music Bulletin Vol.22.1 (1988) p6-7.
  2. Web discussion, also see Old Marine Engines by Stan Grayson
  3. Folklife Festival 2012 "Make and Break Engines"
  4. Alexander, David "The Decay of Trade: An Economic History of the Newfoundland Saltfish Trade 1935-1965, St. John's Memorial University of Newfoundland (1975) p.61
  5. Pinhorn et al. "Background Information of Newfoundland and Labradors inshore Groundfish Resources (1975) p. 30