This is right where the late Jimmy “Woo Woo” Harker would’ve wanted to be.

If Harker, a veteran head boat captain and commercial fisherman, couldn’t be on the water, he would’ve cherished this spot overlooking Bogue Sound, where he could not only see the water but also smell it, taste the salt in the air, and maybe even feel its soft spray on his face from time to time.

And so it is that in Harker’s native Morehead City, where Evans and South Sixth streets converge at the waterfront, a memorial to the beloved sea captain beckons to passersby, encouraging them to stop and appreciate, if only for a moment, those who dedicate their lives to working on the water.

The bronze bust of captain Woo Woo Harker greets those arriving in Morehead City via Bogue Sound.  photograph by John Mauser

The memorial features a bronze bust of Harker perched atop a marble pedestal. A plaque explains that the statue was placed there both in memory of Harker and “to collectively honor everyone who works where the sea meets the sky,” as Harker did for decades.

“Woo Woo was an expert mariner and an expert fisherman,” says longtime friend Terrell Gould, who now owns and operates the Carolina Princess head boat — a vessel that takes more than six passengers out to sea to fish. The boat was once skippered by Harker. “He grew up on the water, and he loved it — that’s what he did all his life.”

Raised at Shell Point on Harkers Island, James Benjamin “Woo Woo” Harker IV began taking fishing parties out to sea as a boy. He had to stand on an old Pepsi-Cola crate just to see over the steering wheel, but he knew the water as well as any veteran sea captain.

It was also in his youth that Harker earned the nickname Woo Woo — a nod to how much he enjoyed wooing women.

To protect the bust of Woo Woo Harker from vandals, a fence was built around the monument. The statue honors all who work on the water. photograph by John Mauser

After high school, Harker worked for a time on a research vessel, the R/V Eastward, before getting into the fishing and head boat business. He became well-known as the skilled, knowledgeable, fun-loving helmsman of the Carolina Princess, one of the more popular head boats on the southern Outer Banks.

Never mind that Harker was prone to seasickness — not exactly an ideal shortcoming for a man who made his living on the water.

“He just took some Dramamine and kept on going,” Gould says. “He was doing what he loved to do, so he didn’t let seasickness hold him back.”

Harker also became known for his sense of humor and his willingness to help anyone in need, two more reasons he was so loved in his hometown. At one time, you could even spot “Woo Woo Harker for President” bumper stickers throughout Morehead City.

The statue is adorned with nautical features, including vibrant fish at the base.  photograph by John Mauser

After Harker died in 2006 at age 55, it was his wife, Margaret, who initiated a fundraising campaign to erect a memorial to her husband, and there was no shortage of willing donors. Beaufort artists Keith Lambert and Willie Baucom-Lambert created the monument, which was dedicated on October 31, 2008.

Unfortunately, in 2012, the city had to erect a seven-foot-high fence of spiked iron bars around the statue to protect it from vandals. Harker’s head peeks over the bars toward the water, reminiscent of that youngster standing on the Pepsi crate to see over the helm. Gould sees the memorial almost daily, and he still pauses from time to time to look at Harker’s face and whisper, “Miss ya, buddy.”

Woo Woo Harker Statue
600 Evans Street
Morehead City, NC 28557