Kodiak's Fishing Roots

Salmon has played an important role in Kodiak's history.

The first civilizations on Kodiak Island used the abundant resource to fluorish. During the summer months, native people migrated to rivermouths to take advantage of the salmon runs. Societies revolved around the seasonal migrations to harvest salmon.

Kodiak's famous bears have grown to their massive proportions from eating the salmon around Kodiak Island. The quality protein in the salmon has differentiated the bears on Kodiak from any other bears on earth.

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In the late 19th century, commercial fishing gained a foothold, and Kodiak has been a fishing community ever since.

Throughout the years since then, the fishing industry has seen many changes.

Commercial fishing has allowed the town of Kodiak to remain a thriving community of people who are committed to maintaining the quality and spirit of Alaskan life.


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Family Pride History

The Family Pride name originates with Captain D.J. Vinberg's respect for his mother Edna Vinberg.

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Edna Vinberg believed in raising her seven children to be exposed to everything. Involvement in the community and being active in the events that shaped Kodiak was a part of growing up for the Vinberg family.

Edna's roots go back to the first Alaskan families who spent their lives in the wilderness, seeking and living adventure and surviving off the land.

Early Alaskans
Freida Reft was a part of an established Kodiak lineage. Freida's father lead an expedition to the Alaska Penisula assessing the aftermath of the 1912 Mt. Katmai eruption. The expedition is detailed in a book entitled "The Valley of 10,000 Smokes."

Edward Bent, was a fisherman from the village of Kaguyak near Old Harbor.

Freida and Edward had a daughter, Edna, and this is where the current Vinberg generation, and Family Pride began in Kodiak, Alaska.

On the paternal side, the Vinberg family roots can be traced to the first Russians who came to Alaska. Katherine Kashevarof was a descendent of the earliest explorers and Native Alaskans.

The Gardner side of the family emigrated to Alaska from Scotland in the 1800s. The family's colorful history extends from the Unga gold rush to Sand Point.

Generations of Alaskan adventurers and fishermen have produced the existing Vinberg family in Kodiak.

Living on the sea is what has lead the family to survive and prosper from a life of rough but loving waters.

Captain and owner D.J. Vinberg says "We demonstrate our family's pride by continuing in our lineage".

Fishing in Alaska

At the turn of the 20th century, commercial fishing was expanding rapidly in Alaskan waters. Packing houses salted cod and herring, and salmon canneries burst into a huge industry. Over the next several years, fishing became the next "gold rush" in Alaska, with little thoughts of sustainability of the seemingly unlimited resources.

By the time Alaska became a state in 1959, the salmon fisheries were in deep trouble. Overfishing had contributed to severe declines in salmon stocks.

Alaska's salmon stocks and the fishing industry that depended on them were in such dire straits that Alaska was declared a federal disaster area in 1953.

Since that time, Alaska has focused on rebuilding healthy salmon stocks. The state constitution requires that salmon habitat be conserved and protected.

Today, this requirement combined with an effective management program have restored the salmon fishery to health. In 1999, for example, Alaska's commercial salmon catch was 214 million fish, the second largest in the state's history.

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Sustainability and respect for the resource are now the number one goal of responsible fishermen.

Family Pride has chosen to abandon the trend towards maximizing the harvest and has instead focused on producing the highest-quality product.

D.J. Vinberg, the Captain of Family Pride has embraced the challenge and focuses on the quality, not quantity of the catch.