Solicito "Mike" Salvador, originally Salvadore Sollecito (1869–1924), was a leader and innovator in the Florida shrimping industry in

Fernandina Beach, Florida Fernandina Beach is a city in and the county seat of Nassau County, Florida, Nassau County, Florida, United States, in the state's northeastern corner. It is the northernmost city on Florida's Atlantic coast, situated on Amelia Island, and is o ...

.
/ref> He is listed as a

Great Floridian Great Floridian is a title bestowed on citizens of Florida by the Florida Department of State. There were actually two formal programs. The Great Floridian 2000 program honored deceased individuals who made "significant contributions in the histor ...

. Born in 1869, Sollecito Salvatore came from

Syracuse, Sicily Syracuse ( ; ; ) is a historic city on the Italian island of Sicily, the capital of the Italian province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek and Roman history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace ...

, as a merchant seaman aboard an Italian freighter forced by a hurricane to lay over at the

Port of Fernandina The Port of Fernandina is located on Florida's Atlantic coast. It is used for terminal service for pulp and paper as well as steel exports, machinery, auto parts, chemicals, beverages, chemicals, building materials and food products. Container ...

Fernandina, Florida Fernandina Beach is a city in and the county seat of Nassau County, Florida, Nassau County, Florida, United States, in the state's northeastern corner. It is the northernmost city on Florida's Atlantic coast, situated on Amelia Island, and is o ...

. Salvador came to

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

in 1895 on a

banana boat Banana Boat is a Polish a cappella sextet, authoring and performing original songs representing the genre of neo-shanties. Being one of the pioneers of the new genre, the group retains its simultaneous focus on contemporary interpretations of ...

. He traveled to

Cedar Key Cedar Key is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 687, down from 702 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Cedar Keys are a cluster of ...

and then Fernandina in 1898 by train. He first worked as an interpreter, fishing part-time. Then he got into shrimping. He experimented with preservatives so shrimp could be shipped and tried canning. He used large shrimp shipments to secure refrigerated car lots and used haul seines to increase catch size. As others copied his innovations, the local industry expanded and corollary businesses such as boat building prospered. He used modified otter trawl nets to greatly expand the catch and make use of deeper waters. He and his brother-in-law, Salvatore Versaggi, expanded operations to

St. Augustine, Florida St. Augustine ( ; ) is a city in and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Located 40 miles (64 km) south of downtown Jacksonville, the city is on the Atlantic coast of northeastern Florida. Founded in 1565 by Spani ...

. Salvador founded the Salvador Fish Company in 1906 and by 1921 was shipping across the U.S. and internationally to countries including Canada and Denmark. He died in 1924. A blue plaque commemorating Salvador is located at the site of his family residence at 20 South 4th Street in Fernandina Beach.Solicito "Mike" Salvador
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References

Further reading