B. G. Thompson
Preserving Oral Histories of Waterfront-Related Pursuits in Bayou La Batre
Bayou La Batre, like other Gulf coastal fishing towns, is undergoing rapid change associated with international market pressures while being threatened by pleasure industry development. As a result, its people are losing key aspects of their traditional lifeways. This oral history film project is an attempt to preserve remembrances and knowledge obtained through such fading ways of life. The principal investigator is Gregory A. Waselkov, with associate investigators Michael Stieber and Harriet L. Richardson Seacat. The project was completed in September 2008, and the collection is housed at the Center for Archaeological Studies at the University of South Alabama, located at HUMB 34, 307 North University Boulevard, Mobile, Alabama 36688. Another location where the collection is housed is the University of South Alabama Archives in Springhill Room 0722, Mobile, Alabama 36688.
National Capital Contracting
B.G. Thompson, whose family has been in the seafood industry another for generations, in one way or another, was interviewed on August 22, 2008. Mr. Thompson spoke of his family's involvement in the seafood industry, which included oystering and shrimping. Mr. Thompson related that his father used to own an oyster canning plant in Coden, Alabama and brought an empty can he has kept over the years to show us. Mr. Thompson, who worked for the National Marine Fisheries Service for 27 years, also spoke in great detail about regulations that have affected the fishing industry in the area.
Principal investigator: Gregory A. Waselkov
Associate investigators: Michael Stieber and Harriet L. Richardson
Seacat Completion date: September 2008
Name of Collection: Preserving Oral Histories of Waterfront-Related Pursuits in Bayou La Batre
Location where collection is housed: Center for Archaeological Studies University of South Alabama HUMB 34 307 N. University Blvd. Mobile, AL 36688
Other location collection is housed: University of South Alabama Archives USA Springhill Room 0722 Mobile, AL 36688
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