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BY TREVOR MCNALLY (WITH FILES FROM TIM JAQUES)

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Campbellton - If all goes as planned, an old Campbellton tradition may be revived. There may be guided fishing excursions on Prichard Lake near Campbellton this summer.

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Courtesy Irene Doyle

This tinted postcard from the turn of the 20th century is entitled “the Day’s Catch”, and depicts trout fishermen at prichard lake, then known as parker lake.

Courtesy Irene Doyle

This is a tinted postcard of men fishing trout on prichard lake, then called parker lake, in the 19th century.

Courtesy Patti Craig

These young men are R. T. McKim, Arnold Kilgour Shives, and Harry Prichard fishing at Prichard Lake about 1908. They got a good catch!

Tribune Collection

Men fishing from a skiff on Prichard Lake, then called Parker Lake, in the 19th century. This photo comes from the 1897 MacAlpine's Tourist Guide. Local hotels advertised fishing excursions to the lake.

Greg Dion

Sugarloaf Park manager Greg Dion appeared before a meeting of Campbellton city council's Finance and Administration Committee on April 29 to explain his proposal in hopes of getting council's okay to proceed with the project.

"We want to offer our campers, and anyone else for that matter, something different," said Dion. "We go to the lake often and see the signs of people fishing when it's well known that fishing in the lake is prohibited. We decided to take the ‘if you can't beat ‘em join ‘em' approach."

Dion explained that parties of up to 10 people would be driven to the lake in the morning, given the opportunity to fish for a few hours before breaking for lunch. They would then be taken back in the early evening for another chance at hooking a fish.

"We want to offer either half day or full day canoe trips. The boats will be run by electric outboards so there would be no affect on the water supply."

He said it would add an extra attraction to people visiting the area, the park in particular.

Mayor Mark Ramsay said that something similar had been tried in the mid-1990s with little success.

"It was a free for all back then and we certainly don't want the same thing to happen this time but from what you have told us, there seems to have been a lot of thought put into this. I would be willing to support this with some conditions."

Ramsay said it would be a good opportunity for additional promotion of the city, the park and the region. He said that the approval should be granted for one year with a full report given to council prior to allowing it to take place in the future.

The only problem the committee had with allowing boats on the water is that the lake serves as a feeder system for Campbellton's water supply.

Councillor Gilbert Cyr brought up the issue of where people would go if they need to relieve themselves. Dion said that having a porta-potty would likely not be the answer because it could very likely end up in the lake. He said that was one issue that needed to be resolved.

The entire project requires the approval from the Department of Environment, which will not happen should the city not provide Dion with a letter of approval. The fear is potential contamination of the water, which serves to supply the city.

It was agreed by the committee that Dion should meet with city engineer Andre Bernard to discuss the finer details of the project, such as legal and liability issues.

The exception to the rule against fishing on the lake would be granted to only Sugarloaf Park. Everyone else would still be forbidden to fish on Prichard Lake.

Used to be popular

Prichard Lake has a long fishing history. In the 19th century, when it was known as Parker Lake, it was famous for the size and quantity of its trout, and local hotels advertised fishing expeditions for tourists. When it was purchased and later renamed by the Prichard family, the tradition continued. Eventually, Campbellton acquired the lake to serve as a source of water for the growing town, but continued to permit fishing, even going so far as to sell its own fishing licences as a means of raising revenue in the days before unconditional grants from the province.

For example, in May, 1932 The Campbellton Graphic announced that due to the Great Depression, Campbellton would be charging a "reduced" rate of $5.00 a day per rod to fish the lake — equal to $74 in today's money.

"The rate for fishing on this beautiful lake was formerly $10 a day, and in view of the quantity and size of trout available that fee was considered reasonable enough by many visitors who enjoyed an outing there last year," The Graphic noted. It considered the reduction in price to be "good news for all who enjoy a quest of speckled beauties amidst charming surroundings, and in a locality easily reached on short notice."

"Trout are particularly plentiful at this delightful retreat and even the inexperienced fisherman can feel certain of a very satisfactory expedition during the regular trout season," the article read.

Campbellton kept up the old Prichard farmhouse and gardens at the lake for recreational purposes, until it burned in 1957. In September of that same year, The Graphic reported on a fine fishing season.

"Final catch figures show that fishermen enjoyed a good season at Prichard Lake. The total catch for the season, which opened on May 19 and closed Monday, Sept. 2, was 3,774. During the 106 days the lake was open it was fished on 74 days and an average of a little over 50 trout were taken per day. The largest daily catch recorded was 184. The opening of Prichard Lake to local and visiting fishermen has provided many hours of good fishing for young and old alike."