Gloucester, MA

Interviewee Collection Sort descending Description Interviewer Date of Interview Location of Interview Affiliation
Hilary Dombrowski Sector Management in New England

Hilary Dombrowski, 64, is a commercial fisherman out of Gloucester, Massachusetts. He began fishing around age 10, progressively buying and operating larger boats. He now jigs for cod and tub trawls for haddock, in the inshore. He is a member of the common pool because quota allocations were assigned based on years during which there were a great deal of regulations, thus limiting catch for many in the region. As a small fisherman, there is no real avenue for him to get into a sector, as it is quite expensive.

Azure Cygler Gloucester, MA NOAA
Danny Murphy Sector Management in New England

Danny Murphy, 39, is a commercial fisherman out of Gloucester, Massachusetts. Mr. Murphy's father started tuna fishing later in his life, eventually owning a trawler which piqued perked his son's interest in fishing as a profession. Mr. Murphy began working on his father's trawler at around 16 years of age and would fish for groundfish and also dredge occasionally for scallops and sea urchins. Currently, Mr. Murphy owns a 36-foot trawler and fishes inshore for groundfish and scallops and is a member of Sector 2 in Gloucester.

Azure Cygler Gloucester, MA NOAA
Angela Sanfilippo Sector Management in New England

Angela Sanfilippo, 62, lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts and serves as the President of Gloucester's Fishermen's Wives. Her husband was a commercial fisherman who lost his boat due to a fire and now works for on a charter boat because they knew it'd be too risky to re-invest in fishing; she does have a brother and other family members that are involved in sectors. Mrs. Sanfilippo works very hard to assist with commercial fisheries, whether through helping fishermen gain health insurance or by working in the permit bank.

Azure Cygler Gloucester, MA NOAA
Christine Sherman Sector Management in New England

Christine Sherman, 60, lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts and is married to a commercial fisherman that is a member of Sector 2. Mrs. Sherman also works for the Northeast Seafood Coalition, an industry advocacy group based in Gloucester and is primarily in charge of fundraising for the group. Mrs. Sherman has felt a huge impact from sectors and feels there is only a few years left for a viable, small boat commercial fishery in Gloucester. She has seen the impacts in her own family and life, having experienced physical and mental issues related to financial stress in an uncertain industry.

Azure Cygler Gloucester, MA NOAA
Russell Sherman Sector Management in New England

Russell Sherman, 64, lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts and has been fishing for over 40 years and came to Cape Ann during his summer breaks from Harvard University where he was studying History. He got his first boat in 1980 and maintains that active participation in fisheries management is very important. He has attended meetings at the state and federal Council level for years until recently when his stress and frustration with the management process overpowered his decision to attend meetings.

Azure Cygler Gloucester, MA NOAA
Sarah Garcia Voices from the Working Waterfront Oral History Project

Biographical Note:
Sarah Garcia is Community Development Director and Harbor Planning Director for the City of Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Kenneth Walker Gloucester, MA National Working Waterfront Network, National Sea Grant Law Center, NOAA Office of Coastal Management, Maine Sea Grant College Program, NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Anthony Gross Strengthening Community Resilience in America’s Oldest Seaport

Anthony Gross was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1952, and moved to Gloucester as a child. As a teenager, he worked at the Empire Fish Company, where Anthony's father was General Manager. At 18, Anthony began lobstering on a 16-foot skiff and crewed on a local tub trawler. Then, at 20, he began offshore lobster fishing and worked his way up from cook to engineer and first mate. When Anthony turned 22, he served on a tallow tanker, the "Y/O Olive Oyl," that carried tallow from Miami to Honduras and Guatemala.

Molly Graham Gloucester, MA NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, Cape Ann Partnership for Science, Technology, and the Natural Environment
Ann Molloy Strengthening Community Resilience in America’s Oldest Seaport

Ann Molloy was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1965. Her ancestors all came from Sicily, where they fished.  She graduated from the University of Northern Colorado and began to work for the family business, Neptune's Harvest, a division of Ocean Crest Seafoods, Inc. as a bookkeeper and is now in charge of sales and marketing.  Ann is a big advocate for Gloucester's Working Waterfront.   

Scope and Content Note

Molly Graham Gloucester, MA NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, Cape Ann Partnership for Science, Technology, and the Natural Environment
Salvatore "Sam" Novello Strengthening Community Resilience in America’s Oldest Seaport

Captain Novello was born in 1943 in Gloucester, Massachusetts, where he has lived all his life. Son of Captain Joseph Novello and Lena (Parisi) Novello, Sam is the last descendant of the Novello and Parisi fishing families who still earns his living as a fisherman.  As a child, Sam went to sea with his father, uncles, and cousins – over one hundred family members - on their fleet of eight wooden fishing vessels.

Molly Graham Gloucester, MA NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, Cape Ann Partnership for Science, Technology, and the Natural Environment
Sebastian Parisi Strengthening Community Resilience in America’s Oldest Seaport

Sebastian Parisi was born in 1940 in Gloucester, Massachusetts.  Both sides of Parisi's family emigrated from Italy, and many of his ancestors and relatives worked in the fishing industry.  He graduated from Gloucester High School, worked as a mechanic for cars and diesel boats.   Parisi served as an aircraft mechanic in the Air Force from 1960 to 1964. Later, he earned a teacher's certificate and taught at vocational schools for over twenty years.   

Scope and Content Note

Molly Graham Gloucester, MA NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, Cape Ann Partnership for Science, Technology, and the Natural Environment