Ahoy, Y’all! 

Since we’ve taken to the seas of the soap business, we’ve had a lot of customers ask about Jernigan, our mascot who stars on soap boxes around the country! We thought it was time to formally introduce her!

whale logo

Jernigan is named after Laura Jernigan, a member of a prominent whaling family. The Jernigan family is famous in Martha’s Vineyard, where our founder, April, was inspired to create the name and business model for Old Whaling Company! To the right is the first signature image that was ever created for Old Whaling Company back in 2008.

Laura Jernigan was born into a whaling family in October, 1868. At a young age she traveled around Cape Horn alongside her father and his crew. Laura kept a journal of her three month travels where she documented her day to day life of watching the sailors and whales. In one entry she wrote, “It is Sunday and very pleasant. I have read two story books. This is my journal. Goodbye for today!” She was an excited 6-year-old girl with a love of the sea. To learn more about her and her family you can visit http://www.girlonawhaleship.org/.



Whales have endured a lot of hardships throughout history. The whaling business made survival as a whale incredibly difficult. Surviving this harsh environment, where whales were likely to go extinct, seemed impossible yet somehow they persevered.

April wanted Old Whaling Company to be as strong as whales have been over time. The symbol of a whale means a great deal to Old Whaling Co. and our business. That’s why Jernigan is our proud mascot! Old Whaling Company, led by Jernigan, wants to be tenacious, creative, beautiful, and strong.

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