Milton C. Shedd (1922-2002) – Businessman & Philanthropist
In a life that spanned almost 80 years, Milton Shedd spent more than 3,500 days on the ocean and extracted untold numbers of striped marlin and white sea bass. But he put back far more than the fish or the profits he took out as an experienced angler and manufacturer of fishing tackle. Shedd is one of the four UCLA fraternity brothers who founded Sea World and the creator of its research institute. Their joint interest in helping people better understand marine life led the quartet to abandon their original idea for a restaurant and concentrate on starting an oceanarium. Together they raised $1.5 million and built Sea World. Shedd did not stop at building Sea World in San Diego or at building other Sea World parks in Ohio, Texas, and Florida. Shedd’s lasting legacy to marine science and education is the nonprofit research foundation he created in 1963, originally called the Mission Bay Research Institute and in 1977 renamed the Hubbs-Sea World Research Institute to honor Carl and Laura Hubbs’ contributions to marine science. Some of Shedd’s happiest days were collecting live specimens for the theme park aboard his 67-foot boat, dubbed Sea World and built as a marine research and fishery development vessel. He later donated the boat to the UCLA Marine Science Center, which he helped establish to prepare grade-school teachers to instruct children about marine life. Shedd also helped create a white sea bass hatchery in Carlsbad and began promoting the use of obsolete oil platform rigging as artificial reefs to serve as fish habitats. Among awards he earned for his oceanic endeavors were the lifetime achievement award from the Audubon Society’s Living Oceans Program and the Professional Achievement Award from UCLA. Shedd was great innovator, a successful businessman, and he was responsible for fishing techniques and tackle used by anglers today.
We honor Milton Shedd for his life’s mission to return to the sea some measure of the benefits he derived from it which makes him a Legacy Champ. If you want to be a Legacy Champ in your own special way, then contact The Mendel Law Firm, L.P. for a free initial consultation on estate planning, trust planning, and/or probate issues.
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