Barbara McCarthy is a retired boat owner and fisherman's wife deeply rooted in the fishing industry. Barbara  grew up in a family with a strong fishing background.  As a mother of seven, she balances family responsibilities with active involvement in the Fishermen’s Wives association, the Blessing of the Fleet Fair, and various market ministries.

Scope and Content Note
Retired boat owner, business woman, mother and fisherman's wife, Barbara McCarthy, shares her knowledge and experiences from throughout her lifetime in the commercial fishing industry. Barbara, who has a family background in fishing, shares her stories of raising seven children while remaining actively involved in her husband's fishing business as well as in the Fishermen's Wives association, the Blessing of the Fleet Fair and in various market ministries.  In this interview, Barbara discusses her involvement and shares the concerns and stories of a fisherman's wife regarding her husband's close calls at sea and shares her knowledge of the safety procedures and practices used during her husband's days as a fisherman. Barbara also reflects upon a life of happiness and hardship which she has faced in making a living in the fishing industry, including the challenges of her husband's blindness and illness, along with her observations of fishing out of various ports in Massachusetts and Rhode Island throughout the decades. In addition, Barbara describes her family's relationships with other fishermen and fishermen's wives as well as different aspects of ship construction and ownership which she has learned and some of the changes which she has noted in the industry throughout the years and into her retirement.