The Perry-Wynns Fish Company Records contain the business records, including financial, payroll, sales, and fishing information, of the Perry-Wynns Fish Company (alternatively known as the Perry-Wynns Fishery) of Colerain, North Carolina, on the Chowan River. The papers date from 1947 to 2002.
The Perry-Wynns Fish Company was formed in 1952 when L. D. Perry and Leo Wynns formed a partnership to run a herring packing plant in Colerain, North Carolina on the western shore of the Chowan River. Incorporated in 1966, the company was, for decades, the largest freshwater herring fishery in the world, packing both herring and herring roe under the Tidewater Brand, the Bertie Brand and Chowan's Best. In September 2003, Hurricane Isabel destroyed nine of the fishery's eleven buildings, putting the company out of business.
The Perry-Wynns Fish Company was formed in 1952 when L.D. Perry and Leo Wynns formed a partnership to run a herring packing plant in Colerain, North Carolina on the western shore of the Chowan River. The company was incorporated on February 7, 1966. For decades, it was the largest freshwater herring fishery in the world, packing both herring and herring roe under the Tidewater Brand, the Bertie Brand and Chowan's Best. It also ran a restaurant, the Sea Gull Cafe, that was open for lunch during the herring season in March and April. During the Perry-Wynns Fish Company's height, it hired up to 200 seasonal and permanent employees. During the 1990s, the number of herring in the Chowan River fell, and the business shrank to a point where it hired 25 seasonal employees and had ten full-time employees. The company also began packing herring, mackerel and mullet caught elsewhere, rather than processing fish caught locally in the Chowan River. In September 2003, Hurricane Isabel destroyed nine of the fishery's eleven buildings, putting the company out of business.
The Perry-Wynns Fish Company Records include volumes of employee records (including salary information), records of fish caught and packed, and books of sales and general financial information. Also included is a subsequent addition of five photographs.
The Perry-Wynns Fish Company Records are organized into four series: Employee Records, Financial Records, Catch Records, and Photographs.
North Carolina State University does not own copyright to this collection. Individuals obtaining materials from the NC State University Libraries' Special Collections Research Center are responsible for using the works in conformance with United States copyright law as well as any donor restrictions accompanying the materials.
This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which North Carolina State University assumes no responsibility.
[Identification of item], Perry-Wynns Fish Company Records, MC 00304, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC
The Perry-Wynns Fish Company Records were a gift of the Perry-Wynns Fish Company on March 13, 2001 and of Lois Fischer Black on March 23, 2002.
The Perry-Wynns Fish Company Records were a gift of the Perry-Wynns Fish Company on March 13, 2001 and of Lois Fischer Black on March 23, 2002.
The collection is organized into four principal series:
This series contains payroll records for the Perry-Wynns Fish Company's seasonal and permanent employees. The volumes have been arranged chronologically.
10 boxes
The Financial Records series contains volumes of the Perry-Wynns Fish Company's financial information, including sales, purchase, and payroll records. The volumes have been arranged chronologically.
21 volumes
The Catch Records series includes records of the numbers of fish caught by Perry-Wynns Fish Company employees in individual years. The records have been arranged chronologically.
10 boxes
Five photographs were taken of the Perry-Wynns Fish Company by Lois Fischer Black, NC State University Libraries Special Collections Research Center, following the company's donation of its records to North Carolina State University.
1 folder
This collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice. Because of the nature of certain archival formats, including digital and audio-visual materials, access to digital files may require additional advanced notice.
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Mailing address:
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Box 7111
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Phone: (919) 515-2273
[Identification of item], Perry-Wynns Fish Company Records, MC 00304, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC
North Carolina State University does not own copyright to this collection. Individuals obtaining materials from the NC State University Libraries' Special Collections Research Center are responsible for using the works in conformance with United States copyright law as well as any donor restrictions accompanying the materials.
This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which North Carolina State University assumes no responsibility.