On last Friday’s 'Last Word' segment, we talked about the excitement that was created in 1991 when a huge sturgeon was brought to shore from Lake Erie.  For this episode, let's go further back in time when catching a sturgeon wasn't such a big deal.   Let’s talk with Jerry Skrypzak.  He is one of Erie's top authorities on fishing, past and present.   In fact, he wrote a book about how important fishing has been to the city.

"The book covers kind of the history of commercial fishing in Erie. Back in the 1920s, it was considered the fresh water fishing capital of the world,” says Jerry. 

A chapter in Jerry's book is devoted to the Lake Erie Sturgeon, a fish that can grow to be 8 feet long, can weigh nearly 200 pounds, and can live to be 100 years old.  Surprisingly, the sturgeon had no value in the early 1900s.

"They were considered a nuisance,” says Jerry.  “In fact, there was a fish supplier located on the peninsula that they would just take and kill the fish and let them lay on the beach. It's on an area on Presque Isle called 'Stinkhole.'  For that reason.  Because things just got so putrid."  

Erie fishermen eventually learned to value the sturgeon for its meat and eggs.  Bob Wellington can identify with those days.  He comes from a family of sturgeon fishermen.  He has a picture of his grandfather and great-grandfather cleaning some large sturgeon on Freeport Beach in North East, circa 1900.

"They had big grappling hooks and they would hook into the fish and they could actually pull them up on shore using horses,” says Bob.  

Unlike his relatives, Bob did not become a commercial fisherman. He became an aquatic biologist for the Erie County Health Department.  By that time, the Lake Erie Sturgeon had become endangered.  One day in August 2001, Bob had his big encounter with a huge sturgeon. It took place on Freeport Beach, the same location where his grandfather and great-grandfather had their picture taken about 100 years earlier.  Bob was called to inspect a large sturgeon that washed onto shore. How big was it?  Bob measured it with a yardstick.

"It was easily over 6 feet.  Easily over 6 feet,” he says.  

So, whatever happened to that huge sturgeon on Freeport Beach?  Bob says he left the fish to go get a more accurate measuring tool.  He wanted to thoroughly examine the big whopper.  But.....

"By the time I got back the fish was gone,” says Bob. “People had dumped it into the lake.  They said they didn't want a fish that big smelling up the property."

Another big fish story from the shores of Lake Erie.