November 2021 • Nebraskaland 65
"The ponds are scattered over a wide
area so it is generally not convenient for
visitors to observe these operations."
Torrents of Change
The Spearfi sh station would later
be named for D.C. Booth, who was its
superintendent during the era of the
Crawford site's inception. Today, the
D.C. Booth Historical National Fish
Hatchery & Archives stands as an
impressive interpretive facility that
annually attracts more than 160,000
visitors and houses many of the
records from the Crawford hatchery
that were used for this report.
Because of budget cuts, the Crawford
Hatchery was abandoned by the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service in 1984 and
the Game and Parks Commission took
over its operation. With support of
the Legislature and Gov. Bob Kerrey,
Nebraska established the Trout Stamp
to fund the operation.
Game and Parks switched it from a
brown and brook trout facility to brown
and rainbow, and, for the fi rst time, the
fi sh from Crawford were distributed
exclusively to Nebraska waters.
Unfortunately, the Crawford
hatchery's era under Game and Parks
was short-lived. On May 10-11,
1991, the hatchery and many other
structures in the valley were destroyed
when 12 inches of rain in a six-hour
period caused a 15- to 18-foot wall of
water to strike parts of Crawford. The
ponds at the hatchery fi lled with mud
and thousands of brood stock, fry and
fi ngerlings washed downstream —
most of which surely died.
While remnants of the hatchery
still stand at the Crawford city park,
the facility never reopened and Game
and Parks has relied on its fi ve other
hatcheries — Calamus, North Platte,
Rock Creek, Valentine and Grove — for
the bulk of its fi sh production.
The hatchery's ponds, however,
remained an asset at Fort Robinson.
With the facility destroyed, all the
ponds opened to the public for fi shing
at the northwest Nebraska tourist
attraction, having transformed to a
state park in the 1960s.
The Trout Stamp also went away,
but the Aquatic Habitat Stamp was
implemented in 1997 to fund fi sheries
projects throughout the state. One
such project includes the impressive
pond renovations being realized at
Fort Robinson today.
Things are a little diff erent from
the ponds' beginnings, but, in a way,
they are still doing what they were
originally designed to do. With the
recent investments, they are sure to
continue putting fi sh on the table
and contribute to the state's fi shing
heritage for generations to come.
N
The hatchery stands in ruins on May 10, 1991, after a devastating fl ood. NGPC LIBRARY
In 1984, Nebraska enacted a $5 trout
stamp to fund the Crawford Hatchery.
