This story is about our great uncle Martin Hawkins (1747-1819), who was called “The Sturgeon Rider”. It sounds like a fish tale, but it really happened! Uncle Martin’s nephew was our ancestor Martin Luther Hawkins.
New York Times Article
More than 100 years ago, the New York Times published a wonderful article relating the story:
Uncle Martin was an avid outdoorsman. In 1779, when Martin lived in Richmond, the shad in the James River would run so thick that you could stand on the shore and net as many fish as you like.
On one occasion, Martin was standing on the shore with other citizens during a very heavy fish run. He was surprised by the appearance of an enormous sturgeon—the 10-foot, 300-pound behemoth was rubbing up against a rock, as they like to do. Martin decided to try to land the beast barehanded. Slowly he moved his hands along the sides of the enormous fish until he suddenly plunged his hands deep into the gills and grabbed tight.
The fish took off swimming violently, with Martin astride. Whether for pride, shock, or determination, Martin held tight. The horrified witnesses watched the fish take Martin under the surface, time and again, as the two proceeded several hundred yards downstream.
Finally, the sturgeon tired and Martin maneuvered him to a sand bar just beyond Mayo’s Bridge, where he finally landed the massive fish.
A Feast in Richmond
There was a feast that night featuring Martin’s huge fish. The story was quickly known by every resident of Richmond. And ever after, our uncle was known as Martin Hawkins the Sturgeon Rider.
The ride is depicted in the contemporaneous painting above.
© 2013 W. Mullins