Anthony Aloysius “Tony” Rosetti

Born in Biloxi, January 1919, to Vincent Rosetti (an immigrant of Hvar, Yugoslavia) and Josephine Frank Rosetti, Tony was the first generation of his family to be born in the US. His grandfather, Anthony Rosetti, came to Biloxi at the turn of the twentieth century, as many Yugoslavian immigrants did, in search of a better life for his family and became a captain and commercial fisherman. He would ultimately become a founding member of Biloxi’s Slavonian Lodge. Tony’s mother, Josephine, came to Biloxi from Baltimore, Maryland as a “seasonal” factory worker, otherwise referred to as “Bohemians”. These workers would live in the seafood “camps” and return to Baltimore when the season ended.

Tony grew up in East Biloxi and attended St. Michael Catholic School and served at daily mass as the family’s home was located just north of the church on 1^st Street. When he was only eleven years old, Tony and his four siblings lost their mother to illness. As his father was now a single parent to five children, Tony felt compelled to take on the responsibility of helping as deckhand on his father’s boat. As each son grew, they would, in turn, take on this same responsibility in helping harvest shrimp and other seafood.

Tony married Margaret Puzz with whom he raised five children – Linda, Tony, Jr., Gary, Jeanie and Bryan. In the early years of his married life, Tony continued to run the family boat, ST. VINCENT, along with his father and brothers. When his close friend, Yankie Barhanovich, offered him a job with American National Life Insurance Company. After the birth of his first son, Tony was drafted into the military and served stateside in WWII. Upon completing his service, he returned to his role at American National Life.

Although his career was no longer in seafood, his love of fishing and the Gulf waters never diminished, seizing every opportunity to fish. The tale was told by one of Tony’s closest friends, Russell Quave, of a fishing trip where ice was forming on their clothes, yet Tony refused to go in and risk missing a nibble on the line!

A faithful supporter of the annual Blessing of the Fleet, Tony never missed the opportunity to help with the event. In 1974, he insisted on helping his friend, Lawrence Skrmetti, with catching shrimp for the Fais-Do-Do the evening before the festivities. During the trip, Tony suffered a fatal heart attack. In honor of his tireless service, the 1982 Blessing of the Fleet was dedicated to the memory of Tony Rosetti, a proud and faithful son of Biloxi’s shrimping heritage.