Gloucester has a rich history of agricultural and fishing traditions led by industrious and hardworking men and women. Today this beautiful community holds on to its community spirit through the Gloucester Community Club.
Gloucester was established by tall ship Capt. Joe Pigott in 1910 when he was granted a charter for a US Post Office. Prior to that, Gloucester was a part of Straits.
Gloucester was named after Gloucester, Mass. where Capt. Pigott had visited in his extensive travels.
A vehicle ferry ran between Gloucester and Harkers Island prior to the construction of the Harkers Island Bridge in 1941.
Gloucester was home to Nat Lee Smith’s boatyard, Carolina Boatworks. Nat Smith built almost all of the boats for the North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development, now the NC Division of Marine Fisheries, from the 1950s until the early 1970s. A well known Nat Smith boat was the Raleigh Bay, a 64-foot yacht built for the state.
Gloucester residents Barbara and Bryan Blake spearhead an annual Mardi Gras event held in Gloucester each February.
Gloucester is home to Pigott Marine Railways, one of the last marine railways left in North Carolina.
Gloucester Community Club is one of the oldest of its kind in the county and has an annual BBQ Chicken fundraiser that supports many community projects and maintains its facility.