Pacific American Fisheries dominated Alaska Salmon Fisheries for many years. The company existed from 1875-1964. Petersburg Fisheries has owned and operated the company since 1965. The 15 original charts in this collection, in blueprint format, are historical documents related to salmon fish traps that were owned by Pacific American Fisheries companies and others. The fish trap charts were inherited by Petersburg Fisheries from Pacific American Fisheries. They had been stored in the 1898 cannery that was once owned by Pacific American Fisheries and range in date between 1921 and 1930. [--Notes from donor].

The State of Alaska banned fish traps in 1959, at the time of statehood, and the ban took effect in 1960. For further information, the library has books on the history of the Pacific American Fisheries company and about salmon fisheries from the mid-1800s to mid-1960s. See also the Pacific American Fisheries Records 1875-1994, Western Washington University, Center for NorthWest Studies, and the Hubbell and Waller Records 1908-1976, University of Fairbanks, Alaska Polar Regions Collections and Archives, for further background information and related collections.