Gotistd Tr&Atum:
Davenport
ь
roth ers Honored
Ray and Walter Davenport’s workshop in Riverneck is crammed with tools and other items.
We
hen Ray Davenport wants to build or repair a fishing net or
boat, he goes to his “treasure pile.”
At more than six feet high, the pile in his Tyrrell County yard is
filled with everything that a fisherman needs — from a boat rudder
to a propeller wheel.
“Most of the pile is scrap,” Ray says. “It comes
in handy when repairing or building anything.”
For most of his life, Ray and his brother, Walter
Davenport have been commercial fishermen who build
and repair their own boats and nets. They also weld,
saw and sew their own fishing tools and gear.
Щ
.
/is members of a
соммилш/
г г
7
/
heel hh diediahiral resources
r S'
0TUIO redi&n? dee
Jfavenhffs reficesenh dc
T T r r
finest egression cfhrud
comm undo's h/ddional
cOinmundo s htijitiona
reliance on die evader
/*•
and icrork of died hands.
Hemming
Because of their self-reliance and knowledge of the
waters around Tyrrell County, the Davenports received a
2007 North Carolina Heritage Award that honors North
Carolinians for their artistry and life-long dedication
to preserving important cultural traditions. They were
honored at a ceremony in downtown Raleigh.
“This nomination for the award hopes to honor
the Davenports commitment to the deep-rooted coastal
tradition of fishing local waters — an occupation that is
a valuable and distinctive example of local culture and folk life,” writes
North Carolina folkloristjill Hemming in the nomination letter.
“As members of a community tied to the natural resources of
the region, the Davenports represent the finest expression of that
community’s traditional reliance on the water and work of their
hands.”
FISHING FREEDOM
The Davenports also have received other honors. In 1999, they
were presented the Brown-Hudson Folklore Award for contributing
to the appreciation, continuation and study of North Carolina folk
traditions.
And when the Partnership for the Sounds developed the Columbia
Theater Cultural Resources Center in Tyrrell County, they used Walter’s
voice for “Hunterjim,” who relates hunting traditions in the region.
For more than 50 years, the brothers have fished the bays, river
and shores of the Albemarle Sound near their Riverneck home outside
of Columbia. Now semi-retired, they live in separate houses on the
same property.
“I don’t know what I’d do if I couldn’t go on the water,” says Ray,
who is married. “You get out there in the morning in that fresh air and
the sun coming up, if you don’t believe there’s a Lord then, you won’t
ever believe.”
As fishermen, Ray and Walter have trawled for shrimp, caught
rockfish, perch and catfish in gill and hoop nets, and trapped crabs
and eels.
But it is the pound net that became their mainstay for years.
Pound netting is tedious and requires multiple sets of nets that have
to be cleaned periodically and treated with copper or asphalt. The net
stakes are cut from the forest and cured in a pond before setting them
out in the water.
Over the years, the brothers have built more than 1 00 pound nets
and numerous fishing boats.
“Pound netting is hard work, but is ideal because the fish stay alive
for weeks in the nets,” Ray says. “For gill nets, you have to collect fish
once a day until the water gets cold. When the water gets cold, you can
leave fish in gill nets for a couple of days.”
As successful commercial fishermen, the Davenports acquired
a complex knowledge of the seasons, water, wind, currents and
geography of the shorelines. They also learned to identify the habits and
life cycles of fish.
“On the water, you have all of nature,” Ray says. “You get out
before daylight and see the sun comes up. It is as pretty as it ever gets.
And you are free when you fish for a living.”
As expert craftsmen, the Davenports have passed their knowledge
onto to other fishermen.
When Willy Phillips bought hoop nets from the brothers, they
began schooling him on new fishing techniques.
“Ray is real quick,” says Phillips, a waterman and seafood dealer in
Tyrrell County. “He can build anything from scrounged parts ofjunk.”
But you never want to work across from Walter on ajob, Phillips
says.
“He will wear you out,” Phillips adds. “Maybe, it’s from his
umpiring all those baseball games, but he’s nothing but hustle.
Together, they just get the job done and are a hard act to follow.”
Continued
14 Coastwatch I Spring 2008 I www.ncseagrant.org
Coastwatch I Spring 2008 I www.ncseagrant.org
15
