Flyer, Fisher Poets Gathering

Description:

Each February since 1998, poets, musicians, and tellers of tall tales descend upon Astoria, Oregon, for the Fisher Poets Gathering, a weekend filled with stories, songs, camaraderie, and reverence for the fishing way of life. Inspired by the National Cowboy Poetry Festival in Elko, Nevada, a group of poets and teachers, all tied in some way to the commercial fishing industry, founded the event. The gathering has grown every year, attracting fisher poets from California to Cape Cod, and Alaska to Florida. It has also been designated as a Local Legacies Project by the Library of Congress’s American Folklife Center. This flyer is from the 2005 Fisher Poets Gathering, held at the Wet Dog Café and five other venues on or near the Astoria waterfront. The 2005 events featured about 70 people who performed readings or music, displayed artwork, and conducted workshops. The event drew over 700 people.

People have created stories, songs, and poems about their working lives for millennia, and American folklore is awash in tales of people working the water. Fishermen’s narratives often reveal a profound sensory awareness, reflecting their close relationship with the natural world. Likewise, the inherent dangers of fishing typically inspire stories and poems featuring strong spiritual elements. Although the aesthetic and spiritual sophistication of fishermen’s narratives often come as a surprise to outsiders, they are celebrated during performances at the Fisher Poets Gathering.

Astoria, established near the mouth of the Columbia River, was the hub of commercial salmon fishing in the 19th and early 20th centuries. With thousands of resident fishermen and scores of canneries lining the river, the town’s identity was wrapped up in the salmon industry. As salmon populations in the river declined, many in the industry relocated, at least seasonally, to Alaska. The Fisher Poets Gathering honors the history of Pacific Coast fishing, as well as the men and women who still live the fishing life. With odes to herring scales, dirges about those lost at sea, and tales of fishers remarkably attuned to nature, the tradition of fisher poets continues to thrive in Astoria.

Date Made: 2005

Place Made: United States: Oregon, Astoria

Subject: FishingRelated Event: Contemporary United States

Subject:

See more items in: Work and Industry: Maritime, Cultures & Communities, Work, Natural Resources

Exhibition: On the Water

Exhibition Location: National Museum of American History

Related Web Publication: http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthewater

Related Publication: On the Water online exhibition

Credit Line: Gift of Columbia River Maritime Museum

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: 2005.3075.04Catalog Number: 2005.3075.04Nonaccession Number: 2005.3075

Object Name: paper flyerpaper flyer - 8th Annual Fisher Poets Gathering (yellow)

Physical Description: paper (overall material)Measurements: overall: 8 1/2 in x 11 in; 21.59 cm x 27.94 cm

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746ab-ac26-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_1291219

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