Interview with Howie Edwards, who was born in Rockland, Maine. In this oral history interview, he describes changes in the community of Rockland as well as the canning industry.

Interview with Rockland lobsterman Roger Freeman, born April 22,1949 in Rockland, ME. At the time of the interview, Mr. Freeman was still living in Rockland. The interview contains information about Mr. Freeman's career fishing for lobsters. He describes his entry into the lobster industry in 1973 and the changes that he witnessed in gear, species fluctuations, prices and regulations.

William Kirk, born in 1947, is a lifelong resident of Rockland, Maine. He is the first member of his family to work in the fishing industry, having entered the lobstering fishery independently in 1967 to supplement his income from working at a clothing factory in town. Despite the significant increase in the cost of bait and other operating costs over the years, Kirk continues to actively lobster, selling his lobsters locally throughout his career. He has two sons, one of whom works with him in the lobstering business while the other works for a fishing company.

Richard A. Whitman is a seasoned fisherman with deep roots in Rockland, Maine, where he has spent his entire life of 48 years. Born into a family with Italian and Sicilian heritage, Whitman's connection to the sea and fishing is a product of both his lineage and his environment. From a young age, he was drawn to the waters that have long provided sustenance and livelihood to the people of Rockland. Over the years, Whitman has gained extensive experience in various sectors of the fishing industry, mastering techniques for catching herring, salmon, scallop, lobster, and shrimp.

Allison Wilson Jr. was born in 1931, in Rockland. He has lived in Port Clyde, Maine, for almost eighty-one years, with twenty-four of those years spent in his current residence at 98 Horse Point Road. Wilson comes from a family with roots in Nova Scotia, with his ancestors having migrated to Port Clyde, where they built a log cabin before returning to Nova Scotia, and then coming back the following year. He estimates that he is the sixth or seventh generation of his family in the area.

Biographical Note:
Shey Conover is the Chief Operating Officer at the Island Institute in Rockland, Maine. She was born on March 5, 1980.

John McMillan, the owner of McMillan Offshore Survival Training and resident of Belfast, ME, and Don Wagner, one of his employees, offer the Drill Conductor Course to lobstermen. Both focus on the importance of safety training in the lobster industry and include stories of the gratitude people have expressed at knowing what to do in emergency situations, particularly when their training was able to save multiple lives.

Steven Holler, a lobsterman out of Boston, MA, begins by talking about the flooding that was happening in Boston at the time of the interview and its effects on the fishermen and his family. He speaks about his experiences fishing out of Boston since he was 14 years old and about the different fishing communities in Maine. Holler shares his thoughts about the current whale entanglement issues and explains why he has decided to lobster only in summer and fall.

Angus King, a United States senator from Brunswick, ME, speaks about the community of Maine and the cross-section of challenges and interests that are represented by people who attend the Maine Fishermen’s Forum. He focuses on the upcoming changes that the Maine community will need to face such as the recent Canadian trade deal with Europe, the Gray Zone, and climate change.

John McMillan, the owner of McMillan Offshore Survival Training and resident of Belfast, ME, and Don Wagner, one of his employees, offer the Drill Conductor Course to lobstermen. Both focus on the importance of safety training in the lobster industry and include stories of the gratitude people have expressed at knowing what to do in emergency situations, particularly when their training was able to save multiple lives.