October 27, 2026 — The New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center is asking fishermen and fishing families to dig through old file boxes, basements, and kitchen drawers for records that could help preserve the history of one of the nation’s most prominent commercial fishing communities.
The center has launched a new collection and digitization effort focused on fishermen’s documents, including logbooks, settlement sheets, vessel trip reports, charts and other records from the New Bedford fishing industry.
For generations, fishermen have kept handwritten logs documenting their time at sea, recording everything from fishing locations and catches to weather, sea conditions, and tow duration. Settlement sheets offer another piece of the story, detailing trip expenses, wages, and crew shares.
Together, those records can provide a window into both the economic and environmental changes fishermen have experienced over time.