# How Long Can Oysters (in a barrel) Survive **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 23, 2011, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-oysters-in-a-barrel-survive/582901 "2011-05-23T14:28:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-oysters-in-a-barrel-survive/582901/1 "2011-05-23T14:28:59Z")
The late Julia Child once claimed that oysters were shipped in barrels, to places far from the coasts-supposedly, even saloons in remote towns in the far West served oysters. Supposedly, if properly packed in barrels (with seaweed), the oysters would stay alive for weeks-is this true? Since bad oysters can be fatal, I wonder about this claim-still Mark Twain mentioned oysters being served at mining camps in the Sierras. So can these mollscs survive a week-long trip? ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-oysters-in-a-barrel-survive/582901/2 "2011-05-23T19:21:48Z")
I would think temperature would be the primary factor. In oldfashioned travel there would have been enough bumping around to keep the water well stirred up. But if the temp got too high the oxygen level would droop and they’d suffocate. So I’m gonna vote “plausible” in the months with an “R” in them. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-oysters-in-a-barrel-survive/582901/3 "2011-05-24T00:02:46Z")
I’ve actually read quite a few articles in newspapers from the period(1850-1890) and, if I remember correctly, the oysters were steamed first, then packed in salt. Of course, they could be “revived” at the final destination. Unless some comes in with another explanation, I’m correct. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![mac\_bolan00](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b3f665/32.png) [@mac\_bolan00](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mac_bolan00)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-oysters-in-a-barrel-survive/582901/4 "2011-05-24T01:22:21Z")
a few days (maybe a week?) according to reader’s digest. the french oysters are “trained” first by putting them in clean sea water after scrubbing for a day and then raising them for 4 hours above water so that they’d learn to keep their mouths shut. i’d like that for humans as well (not just french.) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-oysters-in-a-barrel-survive/582901/5 "2011-05-24T01:29:46Z")
In 1882, 5000 barrels of fresh oysters a week were shipped from New York to Europe (from **The Big Oyster** by Mark Kulansky), so they obviously could last awhile out of the water. If you sprinkled in some oatmeal for them to eat, they’d last even longer. They’re actually quite hardy and, of course, evolved to live out of water when the tide went down. You could also pickle them. If kept away from air (in a covered clay pot, for instance), they could last for years. ---
**Author:** ![Gilles\_de\_Rais](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@Gilles\_de\_Rais](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gilles_de_Rais)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-oysters-in-a-barrel-survive/582901/6 "2011-05-24T01:30:27Z")
According to Eleanor Clark’s _The Oysters of Lcomariaquer_ (copyright 1959 - yes, I have a copy on my shelf), oyster consumption was so prolific from dating back to as early as the Roman times, that there was no need for shipping; they were seeded and grown in oyster beds from so that those residing inland would have access to fresh oysters. This was mostly pioneered by a Frenchman named Victor Coste and his research and methods into cultivation are still being used today.