1830, James Athearn Jones, Traditions of the North American Indians: Being a Second and Revised Edition of "Tales of an Indian Camp", page 276:
If the bear choose to suck his claws, none shall say him nay, and the neeshaw may bury himself as deep in the mud as he likes. At length the souls arrive[…]
1941 November, J. C. Allen, "Vineyard Haven News", in National Fisherman [1941-11], volume 22, issue 10, page 26:
Silver eels, or neshaws, not so common in other latitudes, seem to be quite plentiful this fall although no beach pots have been set as yet.
1981, The Dukes County Intelligencer, volumes 23-25, page 41:
As one old Island fisherman put it, "The Neeshaws would start to run the first stormy night after the full moon in October and we'd set the pots out."
1994, The Dukes County Intelligencer, volumes 36-37, page 131:
Potting Eels: Except for the mature neshaws, Vineyard eels were potted (caught by pots) in September and October. The neshaws[…] When eeling was good, each pot would catch 25 to 100 pounds of neshaws; some pots would be filled to capacity. To remove the eels, the pot was hauled ...
1994, The Dukes County Intelligencer:
Neshaw Eels
Since neshaw (silver) eels were not attracted by baited pots in September and October, as they were not eating during this period ...
1863, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, page 409:
In October, 1845, my friend, the late Dr. Yale, sent me a living specimen of this fish from Holmes's Hole, where it is called the Neshaw eel.
1912, Frederick Webb Hodge, Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico: N-Z, page 57:
Neshaw. A local word for eel in Massachusetts. Trumbull (Natick Dict., 80, 1903) says: “The name of 'neshaw eel' is yet retained by the fishermen of Marthas Vineyard and perhaps else in Massachusetts for th silver eel [...]." The derivation is from Narragansett neeshauog 'eels', literally 'pairers,' from nees 'to', auog 'they go to'.
