Interviewer(s): D. Austin. Amelia, LA

Affiliation: University of Arizona

Lloyd Charpentier was referred to me by Richard Carline, another long-time Tidewater employee. Lloyd was not at work when I interviewed Richard, but Richard talked with him about the study. When I called, he was happy to arrange an interview. I met him at his office at Tidewater.

Lloyd began his career on the water in the 1950s when he went to work on his uncle's fishing boat. He then operated a crewboat for Phillips 66 when the company was laying a pipeline to a Eugene Island field. He left the Gulf of Mexico to serve in the army from 1961 to 1963 and returned to the oilfield as a deckhand/engineer for Tidewater. He advanced to captain within six months and then moved from crew boats to supply vessels the following year. He worked in the Gulf of Mexico, Alaska, South America, and Trinidad until 1973 when he moved into a staff position overseeing vessel repair and maintenance. He has given 40 years of service to the company and has no immediate plans to retire.