DEPARTMENT OF TIDEWATER FISHERIES
The Commission:

Chairman: Arthur H. Brice, 1955
John P. Tawes, 1957

A. S. Creighton, Assistant to the Chairman
John C. Widener, Engineer
J. R. E. Turpin, Seafood Auditor
Ralph C. Hammer, Shellfish Culturist
William W. Watson, Training and Public Relations
E. R. Leitner, Accountant

State Office Building, Annapolis Telephone: Annapolis 2351

The appointment of an Oyster Commission in 1884 and its subse-
quent report was the beginning of the State's concern with tidewater
fisheries. In 1907, a more permanent agency was created to deal with
this problem; it was known 03 the Shellfish Commission. The duties
of this commission were assumed by the Conservation Commission in
1916 and its successor, the Conservation Department, founded in
1922. However, the scope of these two agencies included not only
tidewater fish, but also game and inland fish. The Commission of
Tidewater Fisheries and its affiliated Department were created in
1941 as part of the Board of Natural Resources. The Chairman of
the Commission and the two associate members are appointed by the
Governor for a term of six years with overlapping tenure of office.
The Commission formulates the basic policy which is administered
by the Department of Tidewater Fisheries. The Commission also has
power to make regulations governing the crab fisheries and to enter
into compact with the State of Virginia in this regard, subject to
review and approval by the Board of Natural Resources. The De-
partment is administering a three-part program for the conservation
of the fisheries. The first is concerned with "farming" for the pur-
pose of conserving and increasing the oyster. The second is a fish
management program which limits the number of commercial licenses
issued each year for the taking of fin-fish. The third is a program of
interstate cooperation which is concerned primarily with the crabbing
industry. In addition, each of these: crabbing, fin-fishing, and oyster-
ing is subject to certain regulatory restrictions. To enforce these
regulations, the Department maintains a fleet of thirty-four patrol
boats and one patrol plane (Code 1947, Art. 19A, secs. 5-10).

Advisory Committee to the Commission
on Tidewater Fisheries
Chairman: Charles R. Renn

John A. Cochran, Samuel W. Snitzer, William Mason
Shehan, William Woodfield, Edgar H. Langral, G. F. Beaven.

The Advisory Committee to the Commission on Tidewater Fisheries
was appointed by the Governor in 1951. It is the purpose of the com-
mittee to advise and consult with the Commission on Tidewater Fish-
eries in formulating the policies for the development of the resources
of the Chesapeake Bay and in the administration of the fisheries
program.
Expenditures Appropriation

1960 1951
General fund ............ .......................$580,795.07 $594,412.00
Special fund .......... ..... . .. 30,101.92

Total .............................................$610,896.99 $594,412.00