Historically, fleet dynamics have received less attention than the aspects of population dynamics in fisheries research. However, to understand trends in the volume of landings and changes in the catch per unit of effort and in the economic returns by the fleet, spatio-temporally explicit information is needed. The integration of historical time series on the landings and value of landings of Belgian sea fisheries, by fishing area, allows for a spatial analysis of broad-scaled historical preference of different Belgian fisheries for specific fishing areas. It documents changes in the relative importance of fishing areas for the Belgian fisheries as well as changes in composition of landings from within fishing areas over 8 decades (1929-2009) and underlines the historical importance of the 'coastal waters' to the Belgian fisheries. Finally, qualitative and quantitative statements about the spatial dynamics of Belgian fisheries in published sources are validated and, where not supported by our data, challenged. Some of the cause-effect relations that may explain the spatial dynamics of Belgian sea fisheries, are explored.