Bait and Tackle Shop

Small shops like Murray's Bait and Tackle in Cedar Neck in southern Delaware sell everything an angler needs for a day of fishing the local inland waters, including live and frozen bait, lures, rods, reels, line, nets, hooks, shad darts, foul weather gear, and snacks. Bait shop owners can also hook fishermen up with local charter captains or guides, tell them where to rent a boat, and recommend a good fish taxidermist. These shops often also act as local hangouts, where many a fish tale is told.

Shirley Price began helping her mother run Murray's after her father, "Crabbin'" Jim Murray, passed away. "A lot of places where Dad and I used to haul seine for bait are being bought [for real estate development], so it limits where you can go. Things have changed," Shirley says. Development is impacting water quality as well as access to fishing grounds. A former state legislator, she is considering running again. "If you're ever going to make things better, you've got to be willing to participate."