Maritime Mingle: Stories from the Gulf Coast Commercial Fishing Industry

April 13, 2022 – Sarasota

The Friends of the Florida Maritime Museum is hosting Maritime Mingle: Stories from the Gulf Coast Commercial Fishing Industry in Cortez on April 23, 2022. The free event takes place from 2:30PM to 5:00PM at Fisherman’s Hall located in Cortez, Florida.

Fishing communities depend upon healthy waterways. The men and women whose livelihoods directly reflect any environmental changes are incredibly connected to the ebbs and flows. What can we learn about the water that surrounds the Florida coast from their perspective? Join the Friends of the Florida Maritime Museum to find out!

Get ready to “maritime mingle” with conversation focused on the environmental changes that the commercial fishing industry has witnessed over the years in the Gulf of Mexico. At this fun and interactive discussion your table will “speed date” commercial fishermen, fish house workers, and others who play an important role in the industry.

This event is FREE to the public, but RSVP is required at FLMaritimeFriends.org/events.

This event is part of “Stories from the Gulf Coast Commercial Fishing Industry in Cortez: Environmental Changes,” a multi-dimensional project with a primary focus on oral histories. Commercial fishing industry workers who work out of Cortez, Florida, are being interviewed about the changes in water quality and environmental issues they have witnessed over the years. Included in the project will also be professionally shot video, as well as updates and reprinting of the Vanishing Cultures signs around Cortez.

This project is funded by Florida Humanities* with matching funds from Bradenton Arts and Culture. Florida Humanities awards Community Project Grants for up to $10,000 four times a year to cultural organizations to directly support the creation and implementation of engaging humanities-based public programming, such as oral history projects, historical exhibitions, lecture series, community conversations and more.

“Florida Humanities is thrilled to support the Friends of the Florida Maritime Museum in sharing the stories of our maritime history,” said Grants Director Lindsey E. Morrison. “The Sunshine State has a deep tradition in and relationship to the water, and it’s important that we better understand our connectivity to this vital resource.”

All aspects of this project will be completed by March 2023. *Funding for this program was provided through a grant from Florida Humanities with Funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of Florida Humanities, the National Endowment for the Humanities, Bradenton Arts and Culture, or FFMM.