According to the 1860 census, eight states produced oysters. The census enumerated 426 firms that employed 2,165 hands and produced a catch worth $1.4 million. Connecticut possessed that largest portion of the industry (44.7 percent). Oysters were dredged by sailboats and rowboats. Dealers in New York paid between $3 and $12 per thousand common oysters. They were shipped fresh, canned and pickled. A description provided by a traveler to the United States in the mid-1850s testifies to the popu...