america ’ s first fish commissioner
Baird was born in Reading , Pennsylvania in 1823 and was fascinated by nature as a young boy . His thirst for knowledge was unquenchable , and he was ambitious – an overachiever by almost any standard . Baird graduated from prestigious Dickinson College with both bachelor ’ s and master ’ s degrees before he was 18 years old .
As a young man , he became an accomplished scientist – an ornithologist ( birds ), ichthyologist ( fish ), and herpetologist ( reptiles and amphibians ) – who went to work for the government and used his skills to advance science and nature on a national level .
Baird became the first curator at the Smithsonian Institution in 1850 , at the age of just 27 . He was personally responsible for creating the museum program there , and he pushed for its focus to be on natural history . In 1871 , President Ulysses Grant appointed him the first Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries for the U . S . Fish Commission . He was tasked with stocking American streams and lakes with food fish .
If that seems like an unusual directive , put yourself in the position of mid-19th Century leaders . At the time , large numbers of settlers were moving west . Fish stockings would provide an additional source of food and recreation .
ILLUSTRATION BY JOE MAHLER
So Baird had his Fish Commission staff fill barrels with bass , salmon and other fish and load them onto railroad cars . When the trains would stop to take on water or passengers , the barrels would be emptied into nearby lakes and streams , many of which never held those fish before . As you might imagine , some of the waters were completely unsuited to the fish being stocked .
you have “ bucket biologists ” to thank
Today , of course , such an effort would never happen . It would be condemned as spreading invasive species , and Baird and his staff would be branded “ bucket biologists ” of the worst kind . It wouldn ’ t help that his motives were more bureaucratic than altruistic .
Even then , Baird was criticized for putting fish in places where they might not thrive . He didn ’ t care . In a letter to an underling who questioned the practice of stocking salmon eggs in waters where they almost certainly could not survive , Baird – ever the ambitious bureaucrat – wrote , “ It makes no difference what is done with the salmon eggs . The object is to introduce them into as many states as possible and have credit with Congress accordingly . If they are there , they are there , and we can so swear , and that is the end of it .”
We ’ ll never know how many salmon eggs or fish survived the stockings , but we know some did . Largemouth bass proved particularly resilient . Baird also shipped shad and striped bass all the way across North America to be released into the Pacific , where both are now well-established .
And he didn ’ t stop with North American fish . Since carp were popular in Europe , Baird thought they would be a hit in the U . S ., too . After all , they were easy to raise , prolific and a cheap source of protein . Americans would love them !
He was so effective at generating interest among Washington ’ s power elite that nearly every congressman in the country jumped at the chance to send free carp to constituents . If these “ trash ” fish seem to be everywhere today , we have Baird and our 19th Century congressmen to thank for it .
Baird served the U . S . Fish Commission and the Smithsonian with great distinction for many years . But in November of 1885 , his diary began to list serious health problems – heart issues , headaches , leg pain , urinary difficulties . The ailments progressed until his doctors demanded that he stop work for at least a year beginning in May of 1887 . He took his family to the Adirondack Mountains , and his health seemed to be improving , but by summer things took a bad turn and Baird died in August , likely from heart disease . He was 64 years old .
Although he was one of America ’ s greatest naturalists and his impact on the fishing world has been immeasurable , there ’ s no evidence that Baird caught even one bass in his lifetime . Nevertheless , it ’ s a pretty good bet that everyone reading this has caught bass that wouldn ’ t have been there without Baird . History ultimately judges us all , and Spencer Fullerton Baird may get mixed reviews because of his methods . What ’ s indisputable is that he was a key architect in the history of our sport , and I don ’ t think he should be judged by what we know or merely believe today .
The problem with judging “ then ” by the standards of “ now ” is that it prevents us from understanding history .
DECEMBER-JANUARY 2022 | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM 29