Sometimes the decline of Cape Cod’s fishing industry is referred to in a way that makes it sound like a recent development. In truth, the decline has been ongoing for over a century. By the time that this photo was taken in 1944 the effects of the long-term decline of Cape Cod’s fishing grounds were already readily apparent. Most of the remaining fishing boats were in poor condition, the immense Cold Storage in Truro operation (present day Cold Storage beach) had long since closed and its remains were slowly rotting away, and many of the secondary land-based industries such as net menders had disappeared as well.