Economy

Little changed in economic terms from the arrival of the Croats on the island until the 15th century when the Boljani descended to the sea. Only then did people start fishing, and in general, turn to the sea. In addition, agriculture took up more and more space at the expense of livestock farming. Agriculture, shipping and fishing became the main sources of livelihood. Only at the beginning of the 20th century, and especially in its second half, were traditional occupations increasingly abandoned, and tourism took their place.

Viticulture

Viticulture flourished at the beginning of the 19th century (the appearance of phylloxera in the West). The wine boom prompted the people of Bolzano to clear olive groves in order to free up land for planting vineyards. But the boom did not last long, because on December 6, 1891, a wine clause was included in the trade agreement between Austria and Italy (abolished in 1905), and in 1894, phylloxera appeared. The consequences were fatal (emigration).

Olive growing

The people of Bol cleared the olive groves to make room for vineyards or simply neglected them, so this branch of agriculture has not had much importance in the last two centuries. Only recently has olive growing made some progress, with many new trees planted and old olive groves being restored.

Fishing

Bol , along with Milna, was the most developed fishing village on the island. One third of the people of Bol made their living from fishing. Before World War II, there were 13 summer fishing groups in Bol. During the season, about 200 tons of bluefish would be caught, which were salted. Today, no one makes a living from fishing alone. Fishing is mostly a secondary occupation.
The people of Bol have made a great contribution to the improvement of fishing in Europe. The modern method of tuna fishing in the Adriatic and in Europe began in 1929 when the first Adriatic tuna trawler, the Bol Napredak, set sail under the leadership of Bol resident Antun Viličić in cooperation with fellow fishermen Antun Pešutić and Vicko Brešković, also from Bol.

Maritime

The golden age of Bol’s maritime industry was the second half of the 18th century. At that time, Brač was the third maritime center on the Croatian Adriatic (after Boka and Lošinj), and Bol was the leader on Brač. Around 1800, Bol had 15 patented ships. (At that time, Split did not have any such ships). At the end of the 17th century, a shipyard was operating in Bol.

Trade and crafts have always been developed in Bol, and more recently, tourism as well.