CATHERINE PITALO was a large trawl Biloxi lugger, built in 1937 by Francis Brander. The launch took place at his shipyard on Back Bay Biloxi. The vessel was built for Aleksandro Pitalo and named for his wife, Catherine Sekul Pitalo, a native of Yugoslavia (now known as Croatia).
The CATHERINE PITALO fished the coastal waters of Mississippi Louisiana and Alabama. During the off-season, it carried produce freight to New Orleans. Pitalo owned and operated the boat for thirteen years, but the CATHERINE PITALO’s service continued for many more years to Biloxi’s seafood industry. The vessel participated for many years in the annual Biloxi Blessing of the Fleet.
Catherine Pitalo