New Bedford Ship Supply gained national notoriety when Tommy Lee Jones wore a blue cap with the store’s name on it in the movie “The Finestkind.”
According to store staff, the person in charge of props for the film purchased some hats, shirts and other merchandise from the store before filming began in early 2022. One of those hats was eventually worn by Jones in the film.
After the film was released, people came to the store to buy the hat Jones wore. But while the hype surrounding the film brought the store national attention, local fishermen have relied on the store and its products for decades.
Ship Supply offers a full service
New Bedford Ship Supply, 108 Front Street, has been a focal point for the local commercial fishing industry since the 1930s.
Peter Sousa, who has worked at New Bedford Ship Supply for 30 years, said they are proud to be one of the oldest companies of its kind.
“We sell everything a scallop fisherman needs to catch the scallops, including the equipment, the rings, the links, the chains, the rope and the twine,” he said. “Everything to catch the scallops and also the fish.”
New Bedford Ship Supply specializes in a wide range of marine supplies, including equipment, tools and provisions for both commercial fishermen and recreational sailors.
New Bedford Ship Supply also delivers goods to the docks for the convenience of its customers.
The company supplies fishing vessels with all the provisions, equipment, tools and personal items they need for fishing.
“We sell everything a professional fisherman needs, from gloves to Red Bull,” he said.
The main building with the retail store is located at 108 Front Street. There are also two buildings further back on Hamilton and Senna Streets that have been there since the early 1800s. One building is stocked with groceries and provisions, including frozen food for fishermen when they go out to sea. The other building offers tools and building materials.
Their clothes are worn everywhere
Sousa said the hat was already well known in the fishing community before its appearance in the film “The Finestkind.”
“We’re pretty well known all along the East Coast,” he said.
Sousa said he’s heard that fishermen from Maine to North Carolina to Florida have been spotted wearing the store’s clothing.
Everyone in the family
Rasmus and Sarah Tonnessen were the original owners of New Bedford Ship Supply. Rasmus is considered a key figure in the development of the scallop fishery in New Bedford and opened the New Bedford Ship Supply Company in 1935.
Harriet Didriksen inherited the business from her aunt and uncle after they died. The business is still in the family and today Dana Didriksen is the current owner. Dana is Harriet Didriksen’s daughter-in-law and the Tonnessens’ great-niece.
Owner honored with statue
Several years ago, artist Erik Durant created a bronze sculpture of a fishing family in honor of Rasmus Tonnessen in Tonnessen Square Park at City Pier 3 on New Bedford’s waterfront.
The statue depicts a fisherman kneeling and embracing his daughter with one arm while placing the other hand on his son’s shoulder. His wife stands close behind, touching her son and her husband.
The statue was created at the request of a special committee to commemorate all the fishermen, fisherwomen and families who lived and died with these fleets, as well as all future fishing families.
opening hours
New Bedford Ship Supply, 108 Front St., is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Saturday from 7 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Standard-Times editor Kathryn Gallerani can be reached at [email protected].
