Oysters
had probably been fished in Emsworth and
Warblington for many centuries, before The
Emsworth Oyster Dredgers Co-operative was
established in the 1870s to improve and
protect the industry. In 1788. it is
recorded that over 7,000 bushels of native
Emsworth oysters, with a value of £1,500,
were raked and dredged by a dozen master
fishermen. The oyster industry flourished
and the fishery was at its height during the
last decade of the 19th century. In 1901
between 300 and 400 people, out of a
population of some 3,000, were working in
the Emsworth oyster trade, either for Foster
or the other fishing masters, or engaged in
the sale of oysters. Emsworth's important
oyster industry on which so many relied for
their living was devastated by the
great oyster scare of 1902, when guests at a
Winchester banquet became ill and the Dean
of Winchester died from typhoid attributed
to eating Emsworth oysters at that event.
Following inspection of the oyster beds
gross sewage contamination was identified
and the sale of Emsworth oysters immediately
slumped
By By 1878 approximately 50 vessels belonged to Emsworth - rowing boats for fishing within the harbour, and smacks of up to 30 tons and 50 feet in length capable of fishing in more distant waters. A small number of boats were involved in coastal trade with commodities including coal, corn and timber. For its size, Emsworth had a significant shipbuilding industry and the supported manufacturing of sailcloth, fishing nets and rope. Perhaps the most famous Emsworth shipbuilder was J.D. Foster who built cutters and fast deep-water ketches from 1880 onwards. Today, a century later, it is the 'Echo', Foster's fastest and largest cutter with an overall length of 112 feet, for which it is most renowned. It is reputed to have been the largest fishing vessel to have sailed out of an English port.
At the height of
successful industry, over three million
oysters a year came out of Emsworth to be
distributed across the country. At the end
of the 19th century half the population of
Emsworth earned their living from fishing,
oyster dredging or the industries that
support the trade, such as boat building.
Alas the industry collapsed when the Dean of
Winchester died in 1902 and the blame was
laid on polluted oysters. Since then the
waters have been cleaned-up, but today only
a handful of fishermen are still dredging
the harbour for oysters.
At the height of
the Emsworth oyster industry’s production
boom, the town boasted an oyster shop, which
has long since gone and today the site is
home to an Indian restaurant, A Taste of
India.
Emsworth's Last remaining Oyster Boat, Terror
The Terror was an open
sailing boat built around 1890 and used for
conveying oysters around Chichester Harbour.
It is believed to have been one of a number
built by Foster's in Emsworth in c1880.
Around 29 feet long, nine feet six in beam
and two feet six deep,The Terror was used in
the oyster fishery of Chichester Harbour
until its rapid decline after 1902. She had
a number of private owners throughout the
20th century until purchased in 2004 by
Chichester Harbour Conservancy and restored
at Dolphin quay Boat Yard, Emsworth, with
the help of a lottery grant. The restoration
was completed and the boat was re-launched
in September 2006.
