First the city restricted who could harvest oysters, and then when.
The harvesting would reach its peak in the 1880s, with 20 million oysters being harvested from the bay each year.
At low tide women harvest crabs, oysters and fish from the western shallows.
The beds produce 90 percent of the oysters harvested in New York State.
The Norwalk virus is a relatively common risk in oysters harvested from sewage-tainted waters.
Its shop is open six days a week, and visitors can see employees harvesting and shucking oysters nearby.
The Dutch grew tobacco on farms and harvested oysters and clams for food in the 1600's.
During the 17th century, Dutch settlers established a community on the island and began harvesting oysters, clams, shrimp, and fish.
Over time it became a center for "oystering" (harvesting wild oysters) and was renamed Oysterville.