Big Brown Fish Hatchery, Inc. was started in 1971 as a hobby, at the age of 11 by its owner, Charles A. Conklin, II. The first sale was made in 1975. It was difficult for Charlie to sell these fish as they had become pets. He had names for the 25 most distinct individuals. The fish that he was most fond of was called Big Brown. In 1984, after graduation from college, the hatchery became a full time business. A name was needed and the first that came to mind was Big Brown Fish Hatchery. The hatchery produces over 260,000 pounds of Brown, Brook, Rainbow and Golden Trout and about 20,000 Large Mouth Bass annually. Approximately 25% of its fish are sold at its own Fish & Pay Lake, 65% are stocked for private sport fishing and 10% are sold to food processors.

Since the beginning, Big Brown has grown and expanded to other venues. The Pay Lake (started in 1987) is now 25 years old and is visited by over 20,000 people annually. We have supplied processed trout to the finest restaurants in New York City and Philadelphia. We now concentrate solely on our live fish sales and the pay lake.