A whalin’ we must go: The Tri-towns participation in the annual “Moby-Dick” Marathon
Sarah Kay Brimhall (left) and Derek Miller (right) from Brooklyn, New York have been attending the event every year for 3 years. Derek even got a much sought after "stump the scholar" pin with his question about "Moby-Dick". Photos by Mari Huglin
Sarah Kay Brimhall knitted Derek Miller's sweater which has the title and first chapter of the novel. They usually brew coffee for readers at midnight too. 
Readers found any spot they could to settle in for the 25 hours, even on the Lagoda, a boat inside the museum. 
Audience members showed up bright and early on Jan. 2 to start the event.
More readers are on the deck of the Lagoda as the event kicks off. 
An aerial view of the Lagoda around 10:00 am on Jan. 2 which was the day Melville set sail on the Acushnet. 
"Moby-Dick" in multiple languages was avaliable for rent in the musuem. 
One reader looks over the balcony on a staircase in the packed room as the first chapter is read aloud. 
Massachusetts' poet laureate, Regie Gibson, reads the first chapter with an eruption of applause after the first sentence: "Call me Ishmael". 
Chapters 7 through 9 were read and sung aloud in the chapel down the street. 
Readers were all ages and came from all over the world. 
One volunteer reader presents his part in the chapel.
Readers attempted to find cozy and quiet spots to settle into for the night.
Livestreams of the reading were held in multiple rooms in the musuem. 
Readers bury their noses in their novels, still early in the night.
Hallways and floor space was limited with the amount of participants.
Volunteer readers had numbers and waited for their turn in the theater. 
Ed Doherty reads along as he waits to read out loud at 7:30 am on Sunday, Jan. 3.
Ed Doherty begins reading his section of "Moby-Dick".
Around 8 a.m., readers were awake or just waking up from their sleeping bags.
One reader has a "Keep Reading" sweatshirt cheering on his fellow sailors.
To kick the marathon off, the audience has a chance to stump 6 scholars with obscure "Moby-Dick" and Melville questions.
As the event winds down, the event moved upstairs.
Snow falls outside as readers take on the last few chapters of the large novel.
One reader follows along as the few final chapters are read.
Coffee and food were avaliable throughout the marathon for readers to chat over.
Sarah Kay Brimhall (left) and Derek Miller (right) from Brooklyn, New York have been attending the event every year for 3 years. Derek even got a much sought after "stump the scholar" pin with his question about "Moby-Dick". Photos by Mari Huglin
Sarah Kay Brimhall knitted Derek Miller's sweater which has the title and first chapter of the novel. They usually brew coffee for readers at midnight too.
Readers found any spot they could to settle in for the 25 hours, even on the Lagoda, a boat inside the museum.
Audience members showed up bright and early on Jan. 2 to start the event.
More readers are on the deck of the Lagoda as the event kicks off.
An aerial view of the Lagoda around 10:00 am on Jan. 2 which was the day Melville set sail on the Acushnet.
"Moby-Dick" in multiple languages was avaliable for rent in the musuem.
One reader looks over the balcony on a staircase in the packed room as the first chapter is read aloud.
Massachusetts' poet laureate, Regie Gibson, reads the first chapter with an eruption of applause after the first sentence: "Call me Ishmael".
Chapters 7 through 9 were read and sung aloud in the chapel down the street.
Readers were all ages and came from all over the world.
One volunteer reader presents his part in the chapel.
Readers attempted to find cozy and quiet spots to settle into for the night.
Livestreams of the reading were held in multiple rooms in the musuem.
Readers bury their noses in their novels, still early in the night.
Hallways and floor space was limited with the amount of participants.
Volunteer readers had numbers and waited for their turn in the theater.
Ed Doherty reads along as he waits to read out loud at 7:30 am on Sunday, Jan. 3.
Ed Doherty begins reading his section of "Moby-Dick".
Around 8 a.m., readers were awake or just waking up from their sleeping bags.
One reader has a "Keep Reading" sweatshirt cheering on his fellow sailors.
To kick the marathon off, the audience has a chance to stump 6 scholars with obscure "Moby-Dick" and Melville questions.
As the event winds down, the event moved upstairs.
Snow falls outside as readers take on the last few chapters of the large novel.
One reader follows along as the few final chapters are read.
Coffee and food were avaliable throughout the marathon for readers to chat over.
NEW BEDFORD — Several Tri-town residents were among the 3,000 readers who spent 25 hours on one mission — reading "Moby-Dick" at the New Bedford Whaling Museum.
From Saturday, Jan. 2 to Sunday, Jan. 3 seafarers, scallywags and sailors headed to the annual “Moby-Dick” Marathon to read Melville’s book. Volunteers read the entire book out loud in 5-minute sections, while many attendees read along in the 25 hours it took to finish the book.
A Mattapoisett man was one of this year’s readers. Doherty has been a resident of the South Coast since he was born and said is proud that New Bedford can host an event that celebrates his home.
He said New Bedford and its surrounding towns have begun to own the marathon and take pride in it, especially since it boosts tourism and shows off the culture of the area.
Melville sailed out of New Bedford when researching for his novel, traveling on a Mattapoisett-made ship called the Acushnet, Doherty said.
“I've always loved Mattapoisett and Herman Melville’s connection to Mattapoisett became really important,” he said.
Maura Lohrenz, of Marion, has volunteered at the museum since spring 2025. She is usually a tour guide, but spent the marathon helping sign people in and handing out wrist bands.
She said Tri-town residents have been involved with the tradition since it began in 1997, and believes it is important to continue because of how it celebrates the area and Melville’s connection to it.
“A lot of us come from the Tri-town area and we've kind of adopted it — or they've adopted us,” Lohrenz said.
Her favorite part of the event is seeing it bring different people together. She loves how dedicated people are to the event, even saying one mother has been bringing her 11-year-old son to the event since he was born.
“It's a celebration of New Bedford, the greater Tri-town area, the greater Old Dartmouth area and this whole coastal area,” Lohrenz said.
Her favorite part of the novel is when the small boat carrying Ishmael — the narrator — and other whale-hunting crew members gets attached to a sperm whale as it tries to escape.
Lohrenz recommends everyone give the novel a try, and said she hopes more people will attend the event and visit the museum in the future.
“Of course 'Moby-Dick' is a classic and of course it's rooted in history for this area, but the other thing is that the chapters are short, so it's approachable in that regard,” she said.
Doherty and Lohrenz agreed the event helps the broader community economically and culturally, bringing business and attention to the South Coast.
Lohrenz said that the book and marathon “really broadcast and celebrate the culture and the economic drivers in New Bedford and all across the South Coast.”
Doherty added the event is special because it supports literacy and reading, as it is unusual to have a whole weekend dedicated to reading one book.
“[The marathon] inspires some people to read ‘Moby-Dick’ that maybe otherwise would not have read it,” Doherty said.
