Record Fish Program
Five Record Fish Caught in 2021
Five state record fish, based first on weight and then on length, were caught across Indiana in 2021.
Phillip Duracz of Chesterton set the first new state record with a lake whitefish from Lake Michigan that weighed 9.34 pounds. This broke the existing record by more than a pound and a half.
Wyatt Small of Lanesville set a record in early April with a 2.15-pound skipjack herring on the Ohio River. That record was broken 11 days later with a 2.51-pound skipjack caught on the Ohio by Gary Davis, Jr. of Florence.
The skipjack record wasn’t the only one to fall twice in 2021. Austin Gere of Washington caught a 1.69-pound shortnose gar from Veale Creek in June of 2021. Less than two months later, Fort Wayne resident Kyle Hammond’s first-ever shortnose gar out of the Wabash River, weighing 2.35 pounds, set the final state record of the year.
If you think you have caught a state record fish, follow the steps below to get it certified:
- Both weight and length measurements are required for Record Fish entries. The weight measurement must be taken before the fish is frozen, on a scale certified by the State of Indiana to be accurate to 1 ounce. Each DNR fisheries biologist has a certified scale, or you can also find certified scales at meat markets, or farm-related retailers.
- If a DNR scale is not used, obtain and submit a copy of the Scale Inspection Report from the owner of the store where the fish was weighed.
- Submit a photo or printed meat packaging label (if available) showing the weight of the fish and the location where it was weighed.
- After weighing, the fish may be gutted and iced, but not filleted or otherwise cut up. The fish must be available for inspection and identification and may require verification by a DFW fisheries biologist. It is the responsibility of the angler to schedule a time to have the fish examined by a DFW fisheries biologist.
- Two witnesses who are not relatives of the angler and who observed the weight and length measurement must sign the entry form, which can be found at fishing.IN.gov.
- Provide side-view photograph(s) of the fish and a copy of the angler’s fishing license, if required.
Species |
Weight |
Water, County |
Angler |
Year |
Atlantic Salmon |
14 lb., 4 oz. |
Lake Michigan (Lake) |
Gene Tarrant |
1979 |
Bighead Carp |
53 lb., 8 oz. |
White River (Pike) |
Duane Stafford |
2000 |
Blue Catfish |
104 lb. |
Ohio River |
Bruce Midkiff |
1999 |
Bluegill |
3 lb., 4 oz. |
Pond (Greene) |
Harold L. Catey |
1972 |
Bowfin (Dogfish) |
16.52 lb. |
Mutton Creek (Jackson) |
Paul Huber |
2009 |
Brook Trout |
3 lb., 15 1/2 oz. |
Lake Gage (Steuben) |
Sonny Bashore |
1973 |
Brown Trout |
29.3 lb. |
Lake Michigan (Lake) |
Glen Duesing |
2006 |
Buffalo |
53.9 lb. |
Oak Hill Pond (Gibson) |
Kenneth Houchin |
2002 |
Bullhead |
4.9 lb. |
Potato Creek SP (St. Joseph) |
Darren Robertson |
1994 |
Burbot |
7 lb., 11 oz. |
Lake Michigan |
Larry Milicki |
1990 |
Channel Catfish |
37 lb., 8 oz. |
Lake (Vanderburgh) |
Randy E. Jones |
1980 |
Chinook Salmon |
38 lb. |
Trail Creek (LaPorte) |
Rich Baker |
1980 |
Cisco |
3 lb., 12 oz. |
Big Cedar Lake (Whitley) |
Phillip Wisniewski |
1980 |
Coho Salmon |
20 lb., 12 oz. |
Lake Michigan (LaPorte) |
John Beutner |
1972 |
Common Carp |
43 lb., 4 oz. |
Pike Lake (Kosciusko) |
Russell Long |
1989 |
Crappie |
4 lb., 11 oz. |
Private Lake (Jennings) |
Willis Halcomb |
1994 |
Flathead Catfish |
79 lb. 8 oz. |
White River (Lawrence) |
Glen T. Simpson |
1966 |
Flier |
3 1/2 oz. |
Stream (Jackson) |
Harold H. Otte |
1983 |
Freshwater Drum |
30 lb. |
White River (Martin) |
Garland Fellers |
1963 |
Goldeye |
2.3 lb. |
Wabash River (Vermillion) |
Brock Marietta |
2008 |
Grass Carp |
69.0 lb. |
Pond (Hamilton) |
Daniel Goss |
2018 |
Green Sunfish |
1 lb., 10 oz. |
Pit (Fountain) |
Terry Keller |
1987 |
Hybrid Striped Bass |
22 lb., 2 oz. |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
David G. Coffman |
2005 |
Hybrid Walleye |
8 lb., 8 oz. |
Scottsburg Reservoir (Scott) |
Doug Young |
1999 |
Lake Trout |
37.55 lb. |
Lake Michigan |
Tyler Kreighbaum |
2016 |
Lake Whitefish |
9.34 lb. |
Lake Michigan (Lake) |
Phillip Duracz |
2021 |
Largemouth Bass |
14 lb., 12 oz. |
Lake (Harrison) |
Jenifer Schultz |
1991 |
Longnose Gar |
22.32 lb. |
White River/East Fork (Pike) |
Mark Brittain |
2008 |
Mooneye |
0.36 lb. |
Ohio River (Clark) |
Gerald Gallagher |
2019 |
Muskellunge |
42 lb., 8 oz. |
James Lake (Kosciusko) |
Darrin Conley |
2002 |
Northern Pike |
30 lb., 2 oz. |
Clear Lake (Steuben) |
Jack Barnes |
1992 |
Pink Salmon |
2 lb., 12 1/2 oz. |
Lake Michigan (Lake) |
Richard J. Lisac |
1985 |
Rainbow Trout |
18 lb., 8 oz. |
Clear Lake (Steuben) |
Bill Bigger |
1988 |
Redear Sunfish |
3 lb., 10 oz. |
Lake (Brown) |
R. Peckman |
1974 |
Redfin Pickerel |
0.86 lb. |
Coffee Creek Park Pond (Porter) |
Dunkan Fischer |
2020 |
Rock Bass |
3 lb. |
Sugar Creek (Hancock) |
David Thomas |
1969 |
Sauger |
6 lb., 1 oz |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Mark Bigger |
1983 |
Shortnose Gar |
2.35 lb. |
Wabash River (Wabash) |
Kyle Hammond |
2021 |
Shovelnose Sturgeon |
14 lb., 8 oz. |
Wabash River (Fountain) |
Mike Latoz |
1999 |
Silver Carp |
15 lb, 8 oz. |
White River/West Fork (Greene) |
Daniel Keller |
2003 |
Skipjack Herring |
2.51 lb. |
Wabash River (Carroll) |
Gary Davis Jr. |
2021 |
Smallmouth Bass |
7 lb., 4 oz. |
Twin Lake (LaGrange) |
Dana Yoder |
1992 |
Spotted Bass |
5 lb., 5 oz. |
Private Lake (Vigo) |
Larry Hinesley Jr. |
2006 |
Spotted Gar |
6.78 lb. |
Gravel Pit (Vermillion) |
Nick Waugh |
2017 |
Steelhead Trout |
26.62 lb. |
Trail Creek (LaPorte) |
Evan Nicholson |
1999 |
Striped Bass |
39.08 lb. |
Cecil M. Harden Lake (Parke) |
Jonathan VanHook |
2010 |
Sucker |
12 lb., 3.3 oz |
White River (Bartholomew) |
John Britton |
1991 |
Tiger Muskellunge |
24 lb. |
Wolf Lake (Lake) |
Michael Senics |
1995 |
Tiger Trout |
3 lb. |
Lake Michigan (Lake) |
Mike Ratter |
1978 |
Walleye |
14 lb., 4 oz. |
Kankakee River (Lake) |
Leon Richart |
1974 |
14 lb., 4 oz. |
Tippecanoe River (Pulaski) |
Donald Tedford |
1977 |
|
Warmouth |
1.4 lb. |
North Dugger Pit (Sullivan) |
Jack Tolbert |
2002 |
White Bass |
4 lb., 3 oz. |
Lake Freeman (Carroll) |
James Wagner |
1965 |
White Catfish |
9.72 lb. |
Pond (Wabash) |
Melissa Grimes |
1985 |
Yellow Bass |
2 lb., 15 oz. |
Morse Reservoir (Hamilton) |
Jim Raymer |
2000 |
Yellow Perch |
2 lb., 8 oz. |
Gravel Pit (Vigo) |
Roy W. Burkel Jr. |
1981 |
