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ORAL HISTORY
Richard Gollot
Golden Gulf Coast Packing Company
Richard Gollott has done nearly anything you can do with Gulf seafood while standing on terra firma, from driving truckfuls of oysters sloshing around in back to unloading shrimp boats and blast-freezing their catch. He’s been doing this work his whole life, the third generation in his family to do so. And while his son is the fourth, Mr. Richard has a broader legacy: he is widely acknowledged to be the man who brought the Vietnamese community to Biloxi, literally driving people in one van at a time and helping them put down roots.
After 40 years in the business, Mr. Richard is accustomed to change. He’s watched the collapse of the local oyster industry, he’s watched communities come and go. But as he sees the shrinking of the shrimp business, he is committed to advocating for his industry, for the livelihood of his competitors and the families he helped bring to Biloxi.
