Old Fish Dock Transformed To “Fishermen’s Village”

After the last of the old fish companies on the Maud Street Dock, the Punta Gorda Fish Company, ceased operation in the late 1970s, the dock fell into ruin.    Earl Nightingale, a famous radio personality of the day, discovered the rundown pier with its magnificent view of Charlotte Harbor.    He envisioned the end of the dock becoming a perfect setting for a fine dining restaurant.  But when Nightingale partnered with local developer F.M.Donelson and publisher Robert Anderson, a plan was developed that went beyond a dining venue.   

The partners created a vision for  a major waterfront tourist attraction that would become Fishermen’s Village.  After many months of planning and negotiating, the team had constructed a complex with shops, restaurants,  apartments, a marina, and  tennis courts. 

In keeping with the fishing history, when Fishermen’s Village held its grand opening  in February of 1980, shrimp boats and mullet fishermen could still be seen at the edge of the facility. Pleasure and fishing cruises were also part of the early activity,  as they are today, adding to the atmosphere of the colorful fishing and boating history of days gone by.

The Maud Street Dock

What we now know as Fishermen’s Village is located on the site of the former Maud Street Dock. The Maud Street City Dock was built in 1928 to replace the King Street Pier, home to the Punta Gorda fishing industry. The old pier had been removed to make way for the new Barron Collier bridge and to relocate the fishing businesses away from Collier’s newly renovated Hotel Charlotte Harbor.

At one time there were as many as seven companies that operated the fish packing houses on the Maud Street Dock, but by the mid-1930s, this had shrunk to two, the Punta Gorda Fish Company and the West Coast Fish Company. The pier was also occupied by the Gulf Oil Company. Across from this was Matt Week’s Boat Shop, which had adjoining shore space for boat sheds and marine services.

In 1939, a fire destroyed the two large packing plants. John Willis, houseman for the Punta Gorda Fish Company, his wife and their three-year-old son perished in the fire. The West Coast Fish Company folded, but the Punta Gorda Fish Company continued to operate on a much smaller scale. 

In the mid-1940s, as the fishing industry declined further, a small crab packing plant was built on the pier. Later this plant expanded to include shrimp. 

Over time the dock and remaining buildings fell into disrepair, and in 1977, the city council moved to permit its reuse as a shopping and dining attraction. In February of 1980, Fishermen’s Village opened on the original Maud Street Dock.

From Dilapidated Fishing Dock to Major Southwest Florida Tourist Attraction

Forty years ago the dilapidated dock at the edge of the historic area of Punta Gorda was an eyesore for the City.  On top of that, Florida visitors who had stopped by the town and residents seeking places to shop either soon found or already knew that they had to keep going, either to Fort Myers to Sarasota.  That ended, with a vision of three gentlemen who saw the opportunity to turn the old dock into a shopping/tourist attraction with a New England fishing village theme.  Don Donelsen, a local developer, radio personality Earl Nightingale and publisher Bob Anderson imagined a complex with a fine dining restaurant, shops, apartments, a marina, a total entertainment complex for families.  Fishermen's Village was born.  Forty years later, as the Village expands and improves, the 2nd largest tourist attraction in Southwest Florida has come a long way.