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With its rich history and challenging times during the restoration period. Down East Mariculture Supply Co is dedicated to serving their small community of Smyrna, North Carolina. While also sharing and supporting artists for all to see.
Whether you want to learn the process of farming oysters, experience the history, or have a love for the arts. You don't want to overlook this clam house.
In 2015, Susan Fulcher Hill, her husband Robert Hill, with their son John and his wife Adrianna purchased an old clam house with the idea of renovation and restoration. By putting in a seed nursery they have been operating since 2018. With plans to have a hatchery open in 2021.
Known as the Elmer Willis Clam House, which was named after Elmer Willis, also known as “The Clam King”. He was born in 1905 and was one of five children. He quit school while in the eighth grade to work on a fishing boat with his father, Carlie Ellis.
During his spare time, he studied to become an engineer. He received his license in 1930 after he moved to Cleveland, Ohio. Nine years later, his brother Wesley Ellis started the Willis Brothers, Inc. Where they shipped clams to Baltimore for Heinz Soup Company.
After World War II, Elmer acquired the exclusive right to be the sole provider of Heinz. And In 1965, he claimed to have sold around forty-thousand clams a year, with many coming from Jarrett Bay. He was an innovator and used new technology to expand his business.
By doing so, he installed an evaporator in 1957 to facilitate the process of clams. In 1963, he installed a freezer and began to freeze individual seafood. By doing so in just a few short years, he was delivering over two hundred thousand pounds of seafood each year.
With his many accomplishments, the company was soon sold after his death, not being operational since 1980, and was finally purchased years later by the Hills.
The restoration did not come easy for the Hill family. As they had to remove weeds and other trash from the outside and hire contractors to construct block work for the collapsed roof. While doing so, they met people who have either known the family or worked there in the past.
Prompting Susan to one day open a section of the production company dedicated to those that have worked there in the past and show its history throughout the years.
To add to the challenge, Hurricane Florence hit the Carolina coast, damaging the work they did. With help from organizations like UNC (University of North Carolina), Duke Marine Lab (Duke University), and CCC (Carteret Community College). They were able to get the nursery back up and running again. In 2019, they were able to produce millions of oyster seeds.
Then Hurricane Dorian came and hit the Carolina coast, creating a big hole in the wall and damaging the roof. The Hills got those repaired and now have a fully intact building.
Smyrna, North Carolina is part of Carteret County. Smyrna, North Carolina is known to be on the coast not far from the town of Marshallberg, North Carolina.
Down East Mariculture filtered the seawater down to 1 micron. With the seawater filter, it’s continuously being recirculated through tanks and is dripped into silos, encouraging the setting. They even control the temperature, salinity, PH, and lighting to create optimal conditions for the larvae.
With nine silos, they use nylon screens on the bottom, and each is placed in a tank. Finally, they spread a thin layer of micro-clutch (ground-up oyster shell) evenly on the screens. Allowing the larvae to make their way to the bottom of the micro-clutch.
While sitting in the tanks, the “babies” are fed twice a day. The tanks are cleaned every two days and water is replaced with fresh seawater. When ready, the spat is moved to the grow tanks where they now filter seawater from the bay.
With this process and pumping in water from Jarret Bay. The seeds are washed daily and are sorted by size every few days. Producing fast-growing oyster seed to help farmers grow to market size in nine to thirteen months.
To purchase seeds, Down East Mariculture has a form. From which can be downloaded from their website to purchase the disease-resistant oyster seed. Fill out the form and send it by email or text message with the number provided by their website.
Between March and November of 2019, LaNelle Davis worked on a canvas that was part of the building to create a mosaic mural that was based on an old photograph of Lula Willis Fulcher, Rena Wade Piner, and Lela Thomas opening clams in the 1950s.
Susan was inspired to one day open a retail area for other artists to share and sell their creations with the locals and visitors.
As with many other seafood farms and restaurants in the region, Down East Mariculture has partnered with the North Carolina Oyster Trail. With their mission to provide oyster tourism and help sustain and grow the oyster supply. Resulting in economic growth, environmental and social benefits.
If you wish to schedule a tour for a more hands-on experience, you can contact them by phone, email, or their Facebook page to find out more.
After getting accepted to ECU, I started looking for things to do in and around Greenville, NC. However, my searches kept taking me to places in South Carolina! There must be things to do around ECU, so I started asking other students. They kept telling me to graduate and move away! This inspired me to begin exploring eastern North Carolina and build this website as a showcase of the places to go, sights to see, and things to do all over eastern NC. I have fallen in love with this region and started taking up roots here. After graduating, I didn't move away - I bought a house here and continue to explore eastern North Carolina.
