SHUTE & MERCHANT, STARTED BY JAMES L. SHUTE AND HIS BROTHER-IN-LAW, WILLIAM T. MERCHANT, WAS OFFICIALLY DECLARED TO BE IN OPERATION ON DECEMBER 18, 1861 VIA A PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT PUBLISHED IN THE GLOUCESTER TELEGRAPH AND NEWS. THE COMPANY REMAINED AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE FISHING INDUSTRY FROM 1862 UNTIL 1907, WHEN THE COMPANY BECAME PART OF THE GORTON-PEW FISHERIES COMPANY. (NOW GORTON'S OF GLOUCESTER.)

SHUTE & MERCHANT WAS BUILT ON WHAT WAS KNOWN AS THE "LAND AT THE HEAD OF THE HARBOR", WHICH WAS LOCATED OFF OF PARKER STREET. THAT PORTION OF LAND IS NOW PART OF THE STATE PIER. SHUTE & MERCHANT'S WHARF WAS ALSO HOME TO THE LEWIS H. MERCHANT BOX COMPANY, WHICH WAS EVENTUALLY KNOWN AS THE MERCHANT BOX COMPANY, AS WELL AS THE SITE OF A NET AND SEINE REPAIR BUSINESS RUN BY GEORGE MERCHANT, JR. (AT TIMES NAMES WERE NOT ALWAYS SPELLED CORRECTLY.) -- image: used courtesy of the late Roberta Sheedy (Her Out Of Gloucester website was a great tribute to the Gloucester fishermen lost at sea.)

WHEN SHUTE & MERCHANT OFFICIALLY BEGAN, THEY HAD ONLY A FEW BUILDINGS. A VIEW OF THEIR ORIGINAL SIZE CAN BE SEEN IN A PAINTNG BY KILBY WEBB ELLWELL THAT IS ON DISPLAY AT THE CAPE ANN HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION IN GLOUCESTER. AS THE COMPANY BECAME MORE ESTABLISHED AND WAS DOING MORE WITH THE PROCESSING OF FISH FOR MARKET, BUILDINGS SUCH AS A SMOKEHOUSE WERE ADDED. (THE LONGER DARK BUILDING IN THIS IMAGE.)[close-up of smokehouse] -- image: taken from a stereoview by J.W. & J.S. Moulton of Salem, Mass -- courtesy of Jim Thompson.

SHUTE & MERCHANT INITIALLY OPERATED ITS OWN SMALL FLEET OF FISHING VESSELS WHEN IT FIRST BEGAN, AS DID MOST FISH COMPANIES AT THAT TIME. AT THE TIME OF THIS STEREOVIEW THE CENTER BUILDING WAS IDENTIFIED AS THE FISH AND FITTING OUT WHARF. LATER THEY SOLD THE VESSELS AND FOCUSED THE BUSINESS ON FISH PROCESSING, PACKING AND MARKETING VARIOUS TYPES OF FISH PRODUCTS. JAMES L. SHUTE WAS INTERESTED IN IMPROVING THE FISH PACKAGING PROCESSES, AND IN 1886 HE AND WILLIAM O. TAYLOR PATENTED A FISH CUTTING MACHINE THAT WAS SAID TO BE USED BY OTHER GLOUCESTER FISH COMPANIES. [see view of cutting machine] -- image: taken from a stereoview by Proctor Bros. of Gloucester, Mass -- part of my own collection.

FLAKE YARDS, THE AREAS OF WHITE COVERED TABLES IN THE TWO IMAGES ABOVE, WERE WHERE THE SPLIT AND SALTED FISH WAS PLACED TO DRY IN THE SUN. SHUTE & MERCHANT HAD ABOUT 2000 FEET OF FLAKE YARDS ON THEIR WHARF. WHEN FISH, SUCH AS CODFISH WERE FIRST CAUGHT, THEY WERE PUT INTO PICKLE ABOARD SHIP (PACKED WITH SALT). ONCE UNLOADED, THE FISH WOULD BE TRANSFERRED TO CONTINUE TO PICKLE IN BUTTS (BARRELS) WITH MORE SALT AND WATER, AND STORED FOR AS LONG AS A YEAR OR MORE UNTIL NEEDED TO FILL AN ORDER. WHEN THE FISH WAS NEEDED, IT WOULD BE REMOVED FROM THE BUTTS AND PUT OUT ON WHAT WERE KNOWN AS WATER HORSES TO REMOVE THE WATER. AFTER THE FISH HAD BEEN DRAINED, IT WAS THEN PLACED ON THE FLAKES TO DRY FOR PACKING. AT TIMES DURING THE DRYING PROCESS, THE FLAKES WOULD BE COVERED WITH LONG PIECES OF TARPAULIN. IF THERE WAS RAIN, THE FISH WOULD BE STACKED INTO PILES AND PLACED UNDER SMALL PEAKED BOXES TO KEEP THE FISH DRY. SOME OF THOSE BOXES CAN BE SEEN UNDER THE FLAKES.

FOR THE CELEBRATION OF THE 200TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE INCORPORATION OF GLOUCESTER IN 1892, THE COMPANY HAD PHOTOS TAKEN OF THEIR ESTABLISHMENT. ONE OF THE PHOTOS SHOWED THE FULL FRONT VIEW OF THE WHARVES AND ANOTHER A CROWD OF THE WORKERS STANDING AROUND THE OWNERS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FLAKE YARD. A RATHER GLOWING ACCOUNT OF THE COMPANY AND ITS THE MEN WHO RAN IT FILLED THE CENTER TWO PAGES OF AN "OFFICIAL PROGRAMME" PUBLISHED ESPECIALLY FOR THIS HISTORIC EVENT. [CLICK ON THE IMAGE FOR THAT STORY AND THE OTHER IMAGES]

THIS INTERIOR VIEW SHOWS PART OF THE WORK AREA WHERE THE FISH WERE BEING SKINNED OR CUT. DURING THE BUSY SEASON (SUMMER), SHUTE & MERCHANT EMPLOYED 200 PEOPLE. THE GENTLEMAN IN THE BOWLER HAT IS PROBABLY WILLIAM T. SHUTE, WHO JOINED HIS FATHER AND UNCLE IN THE BUSINESS IN THE LATE 1880'S. AFTER WILLIAM T. MERCHANT'S DEATH IN 1896, WILLIAM T. SHUTE BECAME A FULL PARTNER IN THE BUSINESS. IT WAS WM. T. SHUTE WHO REPRESENTED SHUTE & MERCHANT WHEN IT BECAME PART OF THE GORTON-PEW FISHERIES COMPANY IN 1907, AND HE CONTINUED WORKING FOR THEM BY OVERSEEING THE BUILDINGS OF HIS ORIGINAL BUSINESS AND BY MANAGING THE MERCHANT BOX AND COOPERAGE COMPANY.