Which Came First?

Which Came First, Norfolk or its Mermaids?

"Although there is no documentation to indicate that mermaids were ever seen in Norfolk before the year 2000, their arrival here in that year in such great numbers would indicate a longer-time relationship with the city than was hitherto suspected."

"Evidence includes the region's oyster population. As a mermaid sheds her scales, we now know, the old scales become oyster shells. The Chesapeake Bay near Norfolk teemed with oysters before the first English settlers arrived, and the oyster industry has been a major component of our local economy."

"It has been said that 'the people of Norfolk have been raised on oysters, and the city itself on the shells,' surely an indication that mermaids were here in abundance long, long ago."

- City Historian Peggy Haile