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Bronze artwork with Alewife, Codfish, Mussels and Sea Grasses

This bronze artwork celebrates the abundance of Dorchester’s natural world, while also recognizing the depletion of these resources. The first quote “And when we were hungry, fish was a big help unto me” (Colonist, 1630) was collected from a journal of Dorchester’s first English colonist, Roger Clapp, written during his first season in his new homeland and documents a time when 4’ long codfish filled the Boston Harbor and alewife spawned in streams and ponds of Dorchester, many of which have subsequently been filled and covered over. The second quote “The Alewife ceased to run and the supply of Harbor fish all but disappeared” (Fishing Records, 1740) indicates how quickly these natural resources were depleted.

Image courtesy of Laura Baring-Gould