Abalone

Now considered a luxury shellfish, abalone is found on the Pacific Rim and along the coast of California. The commercial abalone fishery was closed in 1997, although some abalone is taken in a sport fishery north of San Francisco, and it is being farm raised. In earlier times, abalone was taken by Native Americans. In the mid-nineteenth century the Chinese in California fished for abalone, drying and salting the meat for export to China and selling the shells, which were the chief object of the few Anglo-Americans involved in the fishery. The shells were polished and used for inlay, jewelry, mantle ornaments, and soap dishes. When the shallow-water abalone fishery was closed in approximately 1900, Japanese American divers fished for abalone in the subtidal zone.