Bobbie Smith
Boat Stories
Commercial fishing has deep cultural ties to the Georgia coast, particularly the shrimping industry, which is the state’s largest and most economically valuable fishery. Shrimping has played an integral role in shaping the identities of the commercial fishermen who have spent most of their lives on the water. At the heart of these identities are the fishing boats that have carried captains and their crew for decades.
These vessels have been bought and sold by fishermen up and down the coast for decades, connecting multiple generations of fishing families. They serve as the backbone of Georgia’s shrimping industry and have become iconic symbols for fresh and locally harvested seafood for the millions of residents and tourists who visit the coast.
In 2020-2021, Anthropologists at Georgia Southern University collaborated with Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant to record the stories and experiences of local shrimpers and their boats. Funded by Georgia Department of Natural Resources Coastal Resource Division through a Coastal Improvement Grant (NOAA #NA20NOS4190175), student researchers learned about commercial fishing as they conducted these oral history interviews. These recordings powerfully preserve the voices and culture of commercial fishing to be shared with current and future generations. This database of knowledge is also available to guide science and regulatory decisions. Get to know Georgia's commercial fishermen by listening to their "Boat Stories"
Samantha Sheppard
Bobbie Smith is a co-owner of Sapelo Shrimp Company, a fishing industry business located in McIntosh County, Georgia. Despite not having a background in the fishing industry, Smith has become an integral part of the company, relying heavily on her business partner, Bill Harris, for his wealth of knowledge about the industry. Smith's role involves managing the comings and goings of boats at Sapelo Shrimp Company, with the busiest times being from May to early July. She interacts with a variety of fishermen, many of whom travel from out of state, and has become a repository of their stories and experiences.
Scope and Content Note
This interview with Bobbie Smith, conducted on January 29, 2022, provides an inside look into the operations of Sapelo Shrimp Company and the fishing industry in McIntosh County, Georgia. Smith discusses her role as co-owner of the company, her reliance on her business partner, Bill Harris, for industry knowledge, and the seasonal nature of the business. Smith also shares anecdotes about the fishermen who frequent Sapelo Shrimp Company, providing a unique perspective on the fishing community. She recounts a humorous story about a fisherman named Joe who was mistakenly identified by the Coast Guard due to sharing a name with a wanted individual. The interview concludes with Smith expressing her wish for the interviewers to gather more stories from the fishing community and her desire to remain anonymous in their research. She emphasizes that the fishermen deserve all the credit for their work and views herself as a tool in the industry.
Project Note
This project is supported under grant award #NA20NOS4190175 to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources from the Office for Coastal Management, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of DNR, OCM or NOAA.
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