Fishing Tales

About the mural

With the arrival of the railroad in 1886, the area’s fishing trade quickly expanded. This rapid transportation, with its insulated boxcars, provided a way to ship fresh fish north packed in ice and revolutionized the fishing industry for Charlotte Harbor.

Originally the ice came by rail, but by 1891 Punta Gorda had its first ice factory. It was built along the rail line off of Berry Street and the train would stop there to fill with ice before heading out to the Long Dock west of town to pickup the fresh catch of the day for shipping.

Thus is the setting of this mural. It shows the train leaving the Long Dock and traveling across the back of town (now Linear Park), with shrimp and other fishing boats on the harbor.

The mural was dedicated on January 13, 1999.