THE PHOTO BRINGS BACK MEMORIES. WHAT I KNOW ABOUT THE PHOTO IS WHAT I WAS TOLD IN LATER YEARS BY MY DAD, MOTHER, LORETTA, etc. AT THE TIME THE PHOTO WAS TAKEN I DOUBT IF I WAS OLD ENOUGH TO KNOW WHAT WAS HAPPENING. ANYWAY, >> THE STURGEON IS NOT A REAL ONE << IF IT WERE IT WOULD HAVE WEIGHED 30 OR 40 OR ? POUNDS, AND MY MOTHER WOULD NOT BE HOLDING IT UP SO EASILY WITH ONE ARM !! IT WAS MADE BY MY DAD OUT OF WHO KNOWS WHAT AS A JOKE TO FOOL PEOPLE WITH, LOOK AT HIM LAUGHING ON THE PHOTO. PEOPLE GOING BY WOULD THINK HE REALLY HAD CAUGHT A BIG FISH !!! IT DOES LOOK QUITE REAL..

HOWEVER, BACK THEN THERE WERE, A LOT OF VERY LARGE STURGEON IN THE ST. CROIX RIVER. I WAS TOLD THAT "JACK" A SOMEWHAT ILLEGAL TYPE SQUATTER FISHERMAN WHO I REMEMBER WELL, HE LIVED NEAR WHERE WE HAD OUR COTTAGE, CAUGHT A LOT OF THEM, AND ALSO HUGE CATFISH, SMOKED THEM, AND SOLD THEM. HE WAS ALWAYS GIVING FISH TO DAD, I REMEMBER THEY WERE VERY GOOD EATING.HE CAUGHT HIS FISH,AT NIGHT, USING A "TROT" LINE, FULL OF HOOKS, VERY LONG, WENT MORE THAN HALF WAY ACROSS THE RIVER, ON THE BOTTOM, WAS SORT OF ILLEGAL. I WAS TOLD THAT ONE STURGEON HE CAUGHT WEIGHED 263 POUNDS !!!!!!

THIS PHOTO WAS TAKEN ON THE MINNESOTA SIDE OF THE ST. CROIX RIVER OPPOSITE WHERE THE KINNIKINNIC RIVER COMES INTO THE ST. CROIX FROM THE WISCONSIN SIDE, ABOUT FIVE MILES UP THE RIVER FROM PRESCOTT, WISCONSIN. THIS IS WHERE HIS BOAT WAS KEPT, AND ALSO WHERE JACK, THE FISHERMAN, LIVED.

THE BOAT IN THE PHOTO IS ONE OF MANY THAT HENRY BUILT AND POWERED WITH AUTOMOBILE ENGINES THAT HE CONVERTED FOR MARINE USE.