Named for Frank’s youngest
child and Rock’s little sister,
Althea Virginia, known fondly
as Mickey, the Althea B could
carry 20 passengers, handled
well in all weathers, was a
Hurricane Hazel survivor,
and had a 671-hp diesel that
could power her all the way to
Florida. Frank captained the
Althea for 10 years and then
handed her over to Rock when
he was only 24 as Frank went
on to captain the Ruby Lee.
The Municipal Docks
became the center of char-ter
fishing at Wrightsville
Beach. There was a solidarity
among the captains as the
sport fishing industry grew
and formalized. They went
together to present to the
Board of Aldermen to make
sure their voices were heard.
They lobbied the legislature
when they felt the restrictions
needed adjusting.
In the ’50s and ’60s, the
fleet averaged only six boats.
Rock Brown captained
26 october 2021
WBM
along with Eddy Haneman,
Linwood Roberts and Willie
Moore. Drew repeats the
observation heard from many,
that when he was growing
up there were far fewer boats
at Wrightsville Beach. There
were a handful of commercial
or charter boats, but vastly
fewer recreational boats.
Anyone who crosses the Heide
Trask drawbridge today sees
boats lining the Intracoastal,
filling docks to capacity. The
time that Drew remembers is
hard to imagine.
Charter fishing was often
a family affair. Many wives,
having grown up in fishing
communities themselves,
knew their way around a
boat and sometimes served as
valued mates. Kids grew up
helping out.
“When I was 12 years old,
I finally got my Mom to let
me mate for Daddy on the
charter boat even though it
would mean missing school
every now and then,” Drew
says. “She told me that I
could, as long as I main-tained
my grades. On our
first trip of the season in the
spring of ’75 we had a family
party from West Virginia.
We caught 108 kings and two
bonito in less than two hours
and were back at the dock by
10. The fish were still biting
when we left but the party
was too tired to pull any
more in. I sliced my knuckle
to the bone and have the scar
still today. When I threw the
fish on the municipal dock
for pictures, Captain Eddy
Haneman told me that
was a pretty good morning’s
work. Even though I was
young and had a cut open
finger, I had been accepted
as a first mate in the fleet.
Finger didn’t hurt a bit.”
LOCKWISE from below: Captains Frank and Rock Brown pose with a charter group and their
catch. Betty Jean Brown serves as mate on Althea B, hose in hand. An advertisement lists the
charter boat fleet of captains and boats berthed at Wrightsville Beach Municipal Docks.