Skip Finley is a former broadcasting executive who was responsible for over 40 U.S. radio stations and experienced success in all areas of radio. Attempting retirement since age 50, he keeps returning to communications, currently in marketing at the Vineyard Gazette Media Group on Martha’s Vineyard, where he summered since 1955, deciding to become a writer. For five years Finley wrote the weekly Oak Bluffs Town Column and is a contributor to several publications in the areas of whaling and history.
“Much more than a prodigious work of scholarship, Whaling Captains of Color is also an
entertaining read that puts the focus where it properly belongs: on the multicultural essence of a
fishery that spanned the globe. Highly recommended.” —Nathaniel Philbrick, author of In the
Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex
“Skip Finley provides a fascinating portrait of the turbulent and fraught world of the men of
color who not only were whalemen, but also became leaders in one of America’s most iconic
industries. Whaling Captains of Color is a most welcome and long overdue addition to the
literature, and one which will hopefully spur others to dig deeper into this important aspect of
whaling history.” —Eric Jay Dolin, author of Leviathan: The History of Whaling in America
This lecture is sponsored jointly by the Sippican Historical Society and the Mattapoisett Museum.