The shelter where a very small early season haul is being pulled up to the apron onto the wharf. The hinged board on the wharf will be set upright to prevent the fish from flopping back into the water. The people who work on shore at the shelter are called pioneers. At the left in the dark suit is Mr. Chalk, the clerk. At distant right is the sea-end fishing flat.

At the wharf under the shelter, a haul of perch, herring, and catfish; no shad.

Before fishing the seine is run through a large kettle of boiling tar and water and then hung in the sun for several days to dry. This process renders it impervious to water. L-R: a fishing hand; Mr. Cook, the blacksmith from New York state; Frank Wood, owner of Greenfield Fishery and licensed engineer; and Charles Johnson, the clerk from Hertford. The clerk tallied the catch, recording numbers and varieties of fish. The clerk, the blacksmith, and the owner were usually the only white men in the fishery operation. Frank Wood held a steam engineer's license. He took his engineer's license exam in Norfolk VA. The boats used at the fishery could not be licensed or operated legally without a licensed engineer.

Down towards the water on the lane from the fishery to the Greenfield farm house, the tarred seine is spread out on the road for this work. Fishing hands are dressed in oilskin trousers and jackets with sou'wester hats. The man in the overcoat looking left is possibly a Mr. Harrell.

William Skinner and Joe Skinner are two of the men depicted. Before fishing the seine is run through a large kettle of boiling tar and water and then hung in the sun for several days to dry. This process renders it impervious to water.

Winter preparations, putting cork floats on the seine, rigging the seine. Corks are strung on one side of the seine for floatation and on the other side are tied lead weights to carry the seine to the bottom making an upright fence. L_R: George Gilliam, uncle to Frank Wood and a visitor to Greenfield Fishery from Drummond's Point Fishery where he was a clerk for a Wood nephew, John Gilliam Wood; five fishing hands with Frank Wood standing among them.

One of two windlass power houses, Greenfield Fishery, Chowan County, NC, c.1905 (N.2000.11.90). This is the sea-end engine house on the east side of the fishery bay. A breakwater surrounds the engine house and a roping boat is tied beside it. Evidence of erosion is clearly visible in this shot.

In the middle is the residence of the owner, Frank Wood. It was called The Office because its living room was used as the office for Greenfield Fishery. At the right is the north end of the shelter. At the left is the home's detached kitchen. The photographer took this photo from the land-end roping boat which was on its way to its station at the land-end engine house. Captain Mack Towe, captain of the land-end steam flat, the Greenfield, is shown center talking to men in the water. Captain Towe had a memorably loud voice and he is directing the roper to untoggle the seine, which meant to untie the toggles that bound the seine to the rope. When the seine came close enough to land to be handled by men on the wharf, he called for the windlass to be stopped by using the words "Out Horse" which were a throwback to the time when the windlasses were powered by horses and not steam.

The small boat is the rope boat, handled by a man called a roper, who in this picture is standing in the stern of the fishing flat boat, the Fish Hawk, which is the fishery's sea-end flat. The land-end flat is the Greenfield. The two flats are steam-powered with paddle wheels on each side for propulsion. At the left is the main fishing shelter where fish are landed, washed, cleaned, salted, and packed. Herring go into herring kegs; shad, perch, and rock into boxes for shipment to S. B. Miller and Sons, Fulton Fish Market, New York City. To the east of the shelter just to the right is the ice house where ice cut in winter is stored. Further east in the far distance is the sea-end engine house where the windlass pulled the seine back to share after the two steam flats had shot the seine straight out to the center bush at the beginning of the fishing operation. The center bush is a small pine tree stuck upright into the bottom of the sound usually about one to 1 and a quarter miles from shore.

Steam flat with long steering oar fastened to the bow to keep it from tangling with the seine. Boat appears to be anchored from the bow. Man standing in the water shows shallowness of the water. Fishing hands wear oilskin trousers and jackets with rubber hip boots and sou'wester hats. The seine is being loaded onto the stern in the order in which it will be paid out. It will be taken out into the sound to be placed for fishing.

The rope boat being taken ashore. One end of the rope is left on shore, fastened to the windlass in the sea end engine house. One end of the rope is attached to the seine. The windlass pulls the seine ashore with the enclosed fish. The man in the water is preventing the flat's drifting shoreward.

A loaded steam flat. Photographer likely took the photo from the shelter.

Exterior front view.

Interior hallway showing stairway and chairs, furnishings.

Interior showing fireplace and furnishings.

African American female worker in cotton field.

Two African American workers in cotton field.

Mr. W. E. (Ed) Hassell, overseer on the Greenfield Farm, on mule in cotton field with an African American man.

Mr. W. E. (Ed) Hassell 's mule and African-American field hand, Greenfield Farm, Chowan County, NC, c.1905; two-story house with double porch in background.

Mr. W. E. (Ed ) Hassell , overseer on the Greenfield Farm, and mule, Greenfield Farm, Chowan County, NC, c.1905; one-story house in background.

Mr. W. E. (Ed) Hassell, overseer on the Greenfield Farm, mule, and African American man, Greenfield Farm, Chowan County, NC, c.1905; two-story house (Greenfield) with double porch and one-story house both in background.

Logs floating in still water.

This negative has been treated or otherwise tinted with a red colored dye or stain (theories as to why this tint was applied vary but have been winnowed down to basically two possibilities - the red is one of three plates that might have been produced in order to make an early color print or the tint was applied to try to somehow enhance or alter the printing).

Tree in water with large root system and widespread branches.

Many stumps (cypress knees) along shoreline.

Notes from donor Frances Inglis of Edenton, NC, containing interesting information on the Wood Family and hands who worked at the Greenfield Fishery as well as copies of a variety of published and unpublished material on Albemarle Sound fishing and fisheries in general.