My biggest was 55 lbs middle of November back in 1988 on a live poggie slowly dragged behind the old Basstracker up in Hingham harbor. I slipped her right back in and keep on fishing. Not so ironic that it was caught about 50 yards from the same spot I took this 52 lber the previous year.
There were 3 years back then when Hingham harbor was so full of poggies that sometimes it was a bad call to even consider setting your gill net. I learned that the hard way a few times and cursed for the longest time while I picked dozens and dozens of dead poggies out of the net while guys were killing them nearbye.
Biggest caught and lost was pushing 60 IMHO and was either at the beginning or tail end of those same years and during a blitz on Peggotty Beach in Scituate. That was the longest blitz on large 30-40 lbers I'd ever been lucky enough to be in on and all were taken on an atom popper. Not coincidental that the fare for that blitz was big fat poggies and luckily for me the action was so intense a popper was all you needed.
Bring back the big bunker......please.