If you ain't fishin' with a Tillett, then you ain't fishn'

Among the most legendary sportfishing and boatbuilding families on the Outer Banks are the Tilletts - Sam, Omie and Tony. There's even a saying around the docks at the Oregon Inlet Fishing Center, "If you ain't fishin with a Tillett, then you ain't fishin." The facts support this claim since the collective sportfishing experience of Sam, Omie and Tony Tillett totals more than 150 years and counting. This respected threesome has been an integral part of the Outer Banks sportfishing and boatbuilding heritage since the mid-1920s.

Tony Tillett, the youngest of three children, was born in 1940. At the age of 8, Tony began helping his father Sam Tillett at Dykstra's canal on a boat named the Spur. When he was 9, Tony carried his first fishing party to Oregon Inlet for channel bass. Tony remembers that day well. "Daddy made me stand on two drink crates, one stacked on top of the other. I could barely see over the wheel but Daddy said to follow him and to fish close by," he said. "All day we yelled back and forth as he checked to make sure I was OK. I had already been out with him many times so I knew what to expect." By the time he was 12, Tony was guiding fishing parties to the inlet by himself.

During his teenage years, Tony fished with Omie and his uncle Chester on one of Sambo's (his father's) boats named for him, the Tony . He continued to hone his fishing skills under the tutelage of Sam and Omie until he became a full-time charter captain in 1962 when he purchased the Carrov from Carson Stallings.

As with any Captian on a charter boat, there dream is to always catch that "grander" blue marlin. Captain Tony Tillett came close to his dream with a 945 lb blue marlin pictured below.

Many of the great charter captains in today's Oregon Inlet charter fleet, as well as several more around the world, were nurtured as mates under the guidance of Captain Tony Tillett. Few fisherman will ever match his experience or fishing prowess.