Codfishing was the first industry practiced by Europeans in Massachusetts, and it is said that the colony's first export was a cargo of fish.

Thus the codfish has been an important New England symbol for centuries, its image appearing on many early coins, stamps, corporate and government seals, and insignia such as the early crest of the Salem Gazette.

In 1743 a prominent Salem businessman built a mansion in which "the end of every
stair in his spacious hall [displayed] a carved and gilded codfish."
 
In the late 1920s
an "amusing" (as H. P. Lovecraft termed it)
codfish emblem appeared briefly, "totem-like",
on Massachusetts license plates.
Codfishing was the first industry practiced by Europeans in Massachusetts, and it is said that the colony's first export was a cargo of fish.
Thus the codfish has been an important New England symbol for centuries, its image appearing on many early coins, stamps, corporate and government seals, and insignia such as the early crest of the Salem Gazette.
In 1743 a prominent Salem businessman built a mansion in which "the end of every
stair in his spacious hall [displayed] a carved and gilded codfish." 
In the late 1920s
an "amusing" (as H. P. Lovecraft termed it)
codfish emblem appeared briefly, "totem-like",
on Massachusetts license plates.
Sacred Cod