Working Waterfront Festival

Interviewee Collection Sort ascending Description Interviewer Date of Interview Location of Interview Affiliation
Steve Train Collecting Stories at the National Working Waterfronts and Waterways Symposium 2018

Stephen Train is a seasoned commercial fisherman hailing from Long Island, Maine, a tight-knit community deeply rooted in maritime traditions. Born into a family with a rich legacy of fishing, Train has spent the majority of his life navigating the waters of the North Atlantic, harvesting the sea's bounty. His intimate knowledge of the local marine environment, coupled with years of hands-on experience, has made him a respected figure among his peers.

Corina Gribble , Ela Keegan Grand Rapids, MI College of the Atlantic, Maine Sea Grant, The Island Institute, Working Waterfront Festival
Phil Ashworth The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Phil Ashworth is a seasoned fisherman with a career spanning over seventeen years. He began his career in the late '70s after completing school through CETA. His first job was on a scalloping boat, the Ellen Louise, under the captaincy of Jimmy Tinker from Maine. Despite having no prior experience in scalloping, Ashworth's hard work and determination earned him the respect of his crewmates and a full share on the boat. Over the years, Ashworth worked on various boats, including Portuguese draggers, and held master's papers for several vessels.

Markham Starr New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Carol and Pamela Brown The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Carol Brown, a 70-year-old Irish woman, is a fisherman's wife from Gloucester. She is the daughter-in-law of Frank Brown Sr., a Portuguese fisherman who immigrated to the United States from Pico Island in the Azores. Carol married into a fishing family, and her husband, also of Portuguese descent, followed in his father's footsteps. She is known for her insights into the fishing industry and her connection to the legacy of Frank Brown Sr.

Janice Gadaire Fleuriel New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Kevin Curole The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Kevin Curole is a seasoned fisherman with a career spanning 37 years in the shrimp industry. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Curole grew up in Baie L'Fuje, Guiana, and is of Cajun ethnicity. His family has a long history in the fishing industry, with both his father and grandfathers being shrimp fishermen. Curole started his journey in the industry at the tender age of three, living on a 22-foot shrimp boat with his grandparents. In addition to his fishing career, Curole has also worked as a support boat driver for the offshore oil industry in Louisiana.

Madeleine Hall-Arber New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Diane Flynn The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Diane Flynn is a female inshore shellfisher and clam shack owner from Bourne, Massachusetts. She was born in Brockton, Massachusetts, but grew up in Bourne. Flynn has been involved in the fishing industry for over twenty-seven years, having entered the industry through her partner. She and her partner operate small boats for inshore fishing in Bourne, Massachusetts. Flynn's work involves not only fishing but also culling and packing clams. Over the years, she has seen the industry evolve and has witnessed the challenges faced by young people trying to enter the industry.

Janice Gadaire Fleuriel New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Paul Lane The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Paul Lane is a seasoned professional in the fishing industry, currently serving as the Marine Operations Manager and Safety Officer at Fleet Fisheries Inc. Born in Fall River, he has spent his entire life in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. Lane's family has a long history in the fishing industry, with his mother being from a Sicilian fishing family and his father alternating between the fishing industry and tug boats. Lane initially pursued a career with the Shell Oil Company but later returned to the fishing industry, where he worked in shore support .

Markham Starr New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Bob Mitchell The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Bob Mitchell has deep connections to the fishing industry. He was born and raised in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, and comes from a family of Fairhaven natives. After completing his service in the Navy, his father, who was also a fisherman, started a business called R.A. Mitchell Company in 1954, specializing in marine engines and engine repairs for the fishing industry. Bob Mitchell joined the family business in 1961 after completing high school. He further pursued his education in England, attending the Lister Engine Factory School for a year and a half.

Millie Rahn New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Carlos Rafael The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Carlos Rafael was born on the island of Corvo in the Azores and immigrated to New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1968. He is a prominent fishermen and the other of one of the largest fishing fleets on the East Coast of the United States and of Carlos Seafood, Inc. He is known for his dominance in the New England fishing industry and his role in shaping fisheries management policies.

Millie Rahn New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Leslie Trott The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Leslie Trott is a retired fisherman of European American descent, who spent a significant part of his life fishing from the port of New Bedford. Born in New Bedford but raised in Nantucket, Trott comes from a long line of fishermen, with his father and great grandfather both having been involved in the industry. Trott began his fishing career at the age of sixteen and continued for forty-three years, with a brief stint in the merchant marine and the Army.

Janice Gadaire Fleuriel New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival
Crista Bank The Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project

Crista Bank, a fisheries research technician, has a diverse background in marine biology. She graduated from UMass Dartmouth in 1994 and gained experience studying coral reef ecosystems in Australia. She later worked as a marine biology instructor in the Florida Keys and participated in a distance learning project on a sailing ship. Crista's career then took her to New Bedford, Massachusetts, where she joined the sail training ship Ernestina and became involved in the fisheries observer program.

Julie Olson New Bedford, MA Working Waterfront Festival