New Bedford’s Spinner Publications Unveils Historic Books, Calendars for 2026

Spinner Publications of New Bedford is announcing the publication of several new books, plus two new calendars for 2026, all featuring the history, people and places of the SouthCoast.

The mainstays behind Spinner, Joe Thomas and Jay Avila, joined Townsquare Sunday to share some organizational news as well. Thomas has semi-retired – you can still find him in the office – and Avila is now the publisher, a spot he's earned after 30 years with Spinner.

The Legacy of Spinner Publications

Spinner first opened its doors in 1981 and since then has published 40 major book titles, plus numerous smaller publications. Most of those books focus on local history, communities, people and institutions.

"Stories of people's lives were a big part of our first books," Thomas said. "I teamed up with Donna Huse (of UMass Dartmouth) and she really was a great influence on me. Her ideas of oral history and community history are something I learned from her and incorporated into everything I did."

New publisher Jay Avila has no plans to rest on Spinner's success.

"We can do more," he said. "Just the stories that we have and the photographs, there are still many stories to tell."

Preserving Millions of SouthCoast Photos

Speaking of photos, Avila said Spinner has well over two million photos in its archives.

"We've collected tens of thousands of photos from the region's newspapers, plus donated collections as well," he said. "Just from the books and projects we've done, people see us as a repository, and they want to see their family collections saved and shown to the public."

Historic Calendars for 2026

Spinner has created two new historic calendars that will be ready for sale around mid-November. One is Southeastern New England: Independence 250, featuring reproductions of paintings and historic sites key to the Revolutionary War effort in our region. The second calendar is The New England Fisherman: Celebrating 400 years of Fishing off the New England Coast. You can learn more by visiting the Spinner Publications website.

New Books Highlighting SouthCoast History

Thomas said there are three new books soon to be published. They are Black Navigator: Paul Cuffe's Atlantic World, Shipwreck! Horseneck Point Lifesaving & South Coast Rescuers, and Counting the Lost: World War II Casualties of Greater Fall River, Massachusetts.

Southeastern Massachusetts history, its people, cultures and institutions: it's what Spinner Publications does so well.

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