Tag Archives: Wanchese
WWII Veteran/Retired Commercial Fisherman Charles Lee Wescott of Wanchese, NC, has passed away
Charles Lee Wescott, a 105-year-old native of Wanchese, North Carolina, departed his Earthly home in Wanchese, North Carolina, on February 21, 2024, with his family at his side. Charles was born September 27, 1918, in Gum Neck, Tyrrell County, North Carolina, the eldest child born to Theophilus Lee Wescott and Ina Cahoon Wescott. Charles joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 1940 before the United States entered the WW-II efforts in 1941. During WW II, he was assigned to the U.S. Navy. Before Charles’ death, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs confirmed Charles to be the oldest surviving WW-II Veteran in The State of North Carolina. Charles devoted his life to being a commercial fisherman, from which he retired. He was one of the first charter boat captains out of Oregon Inlet Fishing Center in the 1950s. He owned and managed his boat, the Myrtle W., affectionally named after his wife. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 16:35
U.S. Coast Guard suspends search for missing boater off Oregon Inlet
The Coast Guard says they have suspended the search for a missing boater off of Oregon Inlet on North Carolina’s Outer. The Coast Guard found 65-year-old Captain Charlie Griffin of Wanchese dead after a boat heading to the Outer Banks was reported as overdue on Sunday. 36-year-old Chad Dunn remained missing Tuesday night when the Coast Guard suspended the search. more, >>click to read<< 06:11
Capt. Charlie Griffin, ‘Wicked Tuna’ star, dies in boating accident on the Outer Banks; passenger missing
Capt. Charlie “Griff” Griffin of “Wicked Tuna” fame died on the Outer Banks after his boat went missing Sunday night near Oregon Inlet. A person with him remained missing Monday evening, Around 11:35 p.m. Sunday, the Coast Guard received a report of two overdue boaters transiting in a recreational vessel from Virginia Beach to Wanchese, where the boat was going for repairs, a Coast Guard spokesperson said by phone. The last communication with those on the boat had been about 6:15 p.m. Sunday. The Coast Guard and local first responders were searching the oceanfront between Nags Head and Rodanthe by water and ATV on the beach when the boat was found south of Oregon Inlet about 70 yards off shore in the break, the spokesperson said. more, >>click to read<< 17:32
An era ends: Wanchese seafood operation to close in March
Started as a small business 88 years ago by a native Outer Banks fisherman, the Wanchese Fish Co., now a global behemoth, is closing the doors of its production fish offloading and packing operations here. The fish operation on Mill Landing Road in this historic fishing village on the south end of Roanoke Island will be shuttered March 29,,, Wanchese Fish Co., located along the wharf in Wanchese Marine Industrial Park, was purchased by Cooke Seafood USA in 2015, part of the Cooke family’s international aquaculture and seafood company. The Wanchese company had maintained its family-owned operation after the sale. Wanchese Trawl & Supply Co., a marine and fishing equipment retail store that Wanchese Fish Co. started in 1976, will remain open, Richardson said. Also, Shoreland Transport USA, an associated cargo and freight company based in Suffolk, will continue to operate its Outer Banks route. more, >>click to read<< 10:57
Charter/Commercial Fisherman Gilbert R. “Moon” Tillett of Wanchese, N.C., has passed away
Gilbert R. “Moon” Tillett crossed the bar for the last time on January 21, 2024. A native of Wanchese, he was born on December 17, 1929, to the late Leslie R. “Billie” Tillett and Lennie Basnight Tillett. Known as one of the original charter boat captains, Moon helped pave the way for what charter fishing is to the Outer Banks today. He ended this career in 1965 when he bought his first trawler, the Captain John Duke. He fished commercially up and down the East Coast from Massachusetts to Georgia. In 1975, he purchased another trawler, the Linda Gayle, and in 1977, he began a seafood business, the Moon Tillett Fish Company, selling seafood all over the world. In 1979, Moon purchased another trawler, the Gallant Fox. A strong advocate for the stabilization of Oregon Inlet, Moon spent many tireless hours alongside others trying to promote this cause. In 2012, he received the Living Legend Award. more, >>click to read<< 15:40
Commercial Fisherman James Alan Ruhle, Sr. of Wanchese, N.C. has passed away
The commercial fishing industry has lost one of its biggest advocates, James Alan Ruhle, Sr., at the age of 75. Twenty-one weeks to the hour after his bride, he set out for the last time on the morning of September 28, 2023. Born in Oceanside, NY on January 4, 1948, to the late Phil and Gloria Ruhle, James later moved to Wanchese at the age of 15, where he made his home for over 60 years. In 1966, he married the love of his wife, Kathy Daniels, and followed his dream of working on the water as a commercial fisherman. Although Jimmy did not finish high school, the education he received in the ocean surpassed anything taught from a textbook. If there was anyone who had fishing in his veins, it was Jimmy. He recognized early on the importance of sustainability in the fishing industry. He served nine years faithfully on the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council and positively affected the industry through legislation. Although he loved his family dearly, his most prized possession is the F/V Darana R, which he had proudly and successfully captained for almost 50 years! So many times, he’d say with a big smile and heart full of pride; “That ol boat has been good to us,” and he was right!>>click to read<< 11:55
Murray Bridges, NC soft-crab industry pioneer, has passed away
Murray Bridges, the visionary Outer Banks fisherman who remade tiny Colington Island into a behemoth of the soft-shell crab industry in North Carolina, died Tuesday morning after being infected by the Vibrio bacteria two days earlier while tending his crab shedders. Bridges, who owned and operated Endurance Seafood Co. off Colington Road since 1976, was 89. “One week ago, he was setting peeler pots and fishing them,” Willy Phillips, a close friend and a fellow crabber, told Coastal Review Wednesday. “So, he fished to the end. That was Murray — his work ethic was incredible.” A native of Wanchese, Bridges was instrumental in establishing soft-shell crab as a profitable shellfish product in North Carolina, while also insisting on the highest standards. >click to read< 08:40
Jake Griffin of Wanchese, NC: I Feel Good About the Future
“Hard to think that I’m one of the young ones in the industry,” commercial fisherman Jake Griffin laughed. “I’m thirty!” Griffin is one the young ones given that the average age of North Carolina watermen is 52 according to a 2017 study of ocean-going fishermen. Born and raised in his homeport of Wanchese, Griffin fishes all over the map, up and down the coast of North Carolina and even out of Alaska and Maine. “I’m shark fishing now,” he said. “I’ve been fishing out of Morehead City. I trailer the boat here and there, chasing what needs to be chased – sharp noses, spinners, hammers.” Griffin began commercial fishing when he was eleven. >click to read< 09:04
Cooke deal for Wanchese, Rafael scallop vessels, off table for now
Multiple sources close to Wanchese said the deal is off the table, and Rafael confirmed to Undercurrent News a sale of his vessels is not going ahead. On Feb. 9, he said a sale would have to be agreed before March 1, as this is when the new scallop season starts every year.“The deal is off. I won’t sell unless I get my number. I do not need to sell,” he said, speaking to Undercurrent at the show. Although he has not named the possible buyer, Rafael has been open about contemplating selling to an “international company”, thought to be Canadian salmon farmer and processor Cooke. Read the rest here 14:08
