Tom Trenholm was born in Wallace, Nova Scotia on March 8th, 1910. He was the son of Captain William Trenholm who was a successful schooner captain, once owning seven schooners himself. Tom was born into a family of seafaring men and like his brothers he was destined for the same life. It did not take long for Tom as he was made captain of his own schooner at the age of 17. It was around that age that Tom married his wife of over 75 years, Mary, who quickly became his shipmate. The two of them ran Tom's schooner, the 'Nellie Dixon', on their own. They moved to Georgetown, Prince Edward Island in 1937 where they lived together for 20 years.
During World War II Tom and Mary worked all throughout the conflict hauling coal from North Sydney, Nova Scotia to the shores of Newfoundland in the Nellie Dixon. In honour of their dangerous work they are both recognized by the government as Merchant Mariners who helped in the war effort.
Tom Trenholm now lives with Mary in Murray Harbour in their home of over 50 years. At the time of writing (2010) they have been married for over 75 years and have two children. Tom is officially retired from the sea, but he still keeps busy at the age of 100. He has built upwards of 60 fishing boats in his retirement, plays the fiddle, and enjoys regaling people with tales of his seafaring days. Tom is one of the last remaining schooner captains in Canada and still finds time to head out to sea with Mary.