Sverre Hansen, the father of the world-renowned Captain Sig Hansen of Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch, was a true pioneer of the Alaskan crab fishing industry. While he passed away before his family achieved global fame, his legacy is the bedrock of the F/V Northwestern‘s enduring success.
A Life Defined by the Sea and a Sudden End
Sverre Hansen was born in Rogaland, Norway, on January 6, 1938. Coming from a long lineage of Norwegian fishermen, he brought his seafaring heritage to the United States after marrying his wife, Snefryd Jakobsen, in 1964. They settled in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, a hub for the Pacific Northwest fishing community, and started a family and a business: Hansen Enterprises.
He was a visionary in the Bering Sea fleet, recognized as one of the first captains to successfully pursue opilio (snow) crab fishing year-round, transforming the industry from seasonal work into a sustainable, full-time enterprise. Sverre’s commitment to hard work and safety was legendary; the Northwestern, the boat he commissioned and built in 1977, has a remarkable safety record with no fatalities at sea under his command or his sons’ command to this day.
Sverre Hansen’s life ended suddenly on June 10, 2001, when he suffered a heart attack in Seattle, Washington, at the age of 63.
The Patriarch Who Missed the Limelight
Sverre’s passing occurred several years before the premiere of Deadliest Catch in 2005. Because of this timing, his death was never a televised event, but his influence permeates every episode of the show.
Sig Hansen often reflects on his father’s old-school work ethic and wisdom, which he instilled in all three of his sons: Sigurd (Sig), Norman, and Edgar. Sig’s memoir, North by Northwestern, uses chapters to detail a harrowing event from his father’s past: the 1969 sinking of Sverre’s previous boat, the wooden Foremost, in a Bering Sea storm, highlighting the immense dangers Sverre navigated long before reality TV crews were present.
A Lasting Legacy on the Bering Sea
Sverre’s obituary in The Seattle Times in 2001 detailed his love for salmon fishing, boating, and most of all, spending time with his family and friends. He was an active member of several community organizations, including the Leif Erikson Lodge of the Sons of Norway.
His widow, Snefryd Hansen, who passed away in 2022, mentioned that Sverre would have been proud of how his sons worked together and represented their profession on television. The values Sverre established—discipline, resilience, and a deep respect for the unforgiving ocean—remain the guiding principles that ensure the Hansen family legacy continues to thrive on the waters of the Bering Sea.
