The name "Fishermen's Houses" suggests that fishermen paid by the city lived here and set up their fish pits in the cellars. These are basins in which fish could be raised and stored. At the time these houses were built, fishing was an important branch of industry in Schwabach, especially during Lent. The church had banned the consumption of meat during the period from Ash Wednesday to Easter. However, eating fish was permitted.
Historically, 13 types of fish or crustaceans have been recorded as being caught in Schwabach, such as trout, crayfish, lamprey, pike, tench and eel. The fish were not allowed to be caught with a fishing rod. Sack-shaped nets or fish rakes were required.
The basins in the cellars of the fishermen's houses may have been used to water the fish before selling them (for example, to remove the musty taste from bottom fish such as carp). It is also conceivable that the tanks were used to raise young fish, which were then given to pond farmers in the area.