In this interview Richard Gallagher, an electrical engineer at Chris Electronics in New Bedford, MA, shares his work history, discusses various electrical components of boats, details his daily work, and explains the relationships with customers, fishermen, and between co-workers at Chris Electronics.

Robert Hicks is a fifty-two year old Plant Manager of Crystal Ice in New Bedford, Massachusetts.  He has been working at Crystal Ice since 1989, starting as a laborer and working his way up to Plant Manager. In this interview he describes his family history in the business, his early days at Crystal Ice, changes in the plant over the years, types of ice the plant makes, icing the fishing boats, other projects of Crystal Ice, and his favorite and least favorite parts of the job.

Bob Mitchell was born in Boston in 1943. His father, also named Bob, started the R.A. Mitchell marine engines and generators supply company in New Bedford, which he [son Bob] took over and is now largely run by him and two of his daughters on the New Bedford waterfront. Mitchell talks about his engines apprenticeship in England, after high school, with the Lister engine company, and his return to New Bedford to work with his father.

David Marujo was born in New Bedford in 1968 and has lived in Acushnet since age 18.  He began working at Crystal Ice 31 years ago and has worked his way up to his current job as supervisor.  He describes the process of making different kinds of ice, how the technology has changed in the last 30 years, reflects on the changing waterfront and the trickle down effects on shore-side businesses as quotas restrict fishing days and demand for services, and the next generations are/are not coming into the business.  “The waterfront is nothing like

Jay Hall spent 25 years working in the medical gas industry and now works for New Bedford Welding Supply, which supplies compressed gas to fishing vessels in the New Bedford - Fairhaven shipping industry.  He discusses his professional background, the different types of welding supplies and gas mixtures that New Bedford Welding Supply provides to the fishing industry, the process of filling a tank, the training provided to employees, specialty equipment, and potential dangers in the work environment.

Jameson “Jamie” Bell was born October 15, 1971 in Fort Lawton Beach, Florida and is currently employed as a Marine Electronics Technician at Chris Electronics in New Bedford, MA. In this interview, he discusses his past in the electronics field, his feelings about his job including his favorite and least favorite aspects of it. He shares how he interacts with fishermen, captains, customers and coworkers, and how his job is a good fit for his personality.

Jameson Bell works with marine electronics. He is paid hourly and is not part of a union. He explains the types of electronics in a wheelhouse, how navigational electronics have changed over the years, and how that has affected the fishing industry. He explains the costs of navigational equipment and the life expectancy of various marine equipment, such as the magnetron. He also discusses the different types of people he meets on the waterfront, including ship captains, fishermen, and other workers. He discusses the drug use on the waterfront.

Jeff Cook is one of the owners of New Bedford Welding Supply in New Bedford, MA. He studied welding in high school and college and has worked for his family run business from a young age, starting with painting the gas cylinders and working his way up to customer sales.  He discusses the role of New Bedford Welding Supply in the fishing industry, the changes in welding equipment over the years, the role of his family members in the family business, and the positive and negative aspects of his job.

John Miranda describes family life in Portugal, his immigration to America in 1980 and his training in engineering in both Portugal and the U.S. He discusses working for R.A. Mitchell for three decades, engineering changes in the fishing industry over the last 3 decades and his hopes for the future of fishing in general.

This oral history was produced in 2017 as part of the Workers on the Waterfront Oral History Project conducted by New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center with funding from an Archie Green Fellowship provided by the Library of Congress.

John Pelicas describes in detail his work and life as a marine mechanic at R.A. Mitchell, where he has worked for 31 years. An immigrant from Portugal, he comes from a fishing family and has always been a part of the community on the waterfront. He discusses dangers if the job, fishing regulations, various engine fabrications, his deep commitment to the job, difficulties with computerized engines and what he sees as a bright future for the fishing industry.