Speaker: Tim Thomas, Fisheries Historian, Monterey, CA
Japanese abalone fishermen first arrived in Monterey in the mid-1890s and quickly began to harvest what became a regional economic resource. Those first divers, called amas, dove into the cold waters of Monterey Bay in nothing but thin cotton outfits and a pair of goggles. Within a year, they began to import helmet technology. In 1908, a German restaurateur named, “Pop” Ernest Doelter created the abalone steak in his Monterey restaurant, transforming what was once described as “like eating a rubber boot” into an epicurean delight. By 1929, the California abalone industry was generating a million dollars in revenue annually; 75% came out of Monterey Bay, which had become the abalone capitol of the world.