Stonington Tradition: Blessing Of The Last Commercial CT Fishing Fleet

STONINGTON BOROUGH, CT —This year will mark the 70th Blessing of the Fleet. A tradition for decades, the blessing of Stonington fishing fleet is also a memorial to those who have died at sea. A fisherman's mass, parade, and procession of decorated fishing vessels are part of the annual July event in Stonington Borough.

The Stonington fleet is the last commercial fishing fleet in Connecticut.

The event begins with a mass at St. Mary's Church, then, a parade through Stonington Borough that includes statuary of Saint Peter, the patron saint of fishermen. Then, the procession of fishing vessels, adorned with colorful flags and other decorative accouterments.

The blessing, given for many years by The Most Rev. Michael R. Cote, D.D., Bishop of Norwich, has him walk the line of quays conferring the blessing on every fishing vessel and their captains and crews. After boarding the flagship, they will put to sea and once outside the harbor entrance, past the breakwater in Long Island Sound, the Stonington Fishermen’s Association will place a wreath in the shape of an anchor on the water in remembrance of those gone before. As of 2022, 40 members of the Stonington Fishermen Association have perished at sea.

The Blessing festival continues at the Town Dock with food and live music. It is a commemorative as well as forward-looking festive occasion, open to tourists, town residents, and families who depend on the fishing fleet as employment.

The Blessing of the Fleet is modeled on similar events that occur in countless seaport towns and cities throughout Europe, Australia, and the British Isles for over a thousand years. And some legends even have its beginnings originating BC in the Greek Islands. The professional fishermen of Stonington were predominantly, but not entirely, Portuguese—originally from the Atlantic islands of the Azores.