The Vineyard Gazette won 35 awards for excellence in journalism in an annual competition for newspapers in New England, including first place awards for the newspaper’s website and several awards for its special coverage of coastal erosion and the visit last summer by the whaleship Charles W. Morgan.

The record number of awards included 17 first place awards in photography, reporting, advertising, design and digital publishing in the New England Newspaper and Press Association’s Better Newspaper competition.

Alison Shaw was tops in the pictorial photo category for this photograph taken after a blizzard last year.

Alison Shaw

Alison Shaw was tops in the pictorial photo category for this photograph taken after a blizzard last year.

Alison Shaw

The awards were announced Saturday night at the Seaport Hotel in Boston and honored both company-wide and individual achievement. For the second year in a row, the Gazette website was named best overall in its category, in addition to winning first place for best website design. The newspaper also won first place for overall design and presentation in print.

The paper’s coverage of coastal erosion was awarded a first place prize for multimedia coverage, and Gazette staff also won two first place awards for its coverage of the visit of the whaling ship Charles W. Morgan following an extensive renovation at Mystic Seaport.

“The Gazette lives up to the heritage of the Island when the whaler Charles W. Morgan visits . . . a fine job telling its rich history and its connection to the Vineyard,” judges said.

The paper also won an Innovator Award for the Gazette Notebook, a twice-weekly email that gives subscribers a look at the latest Vineyard news and local color.

The awards included six first-place prizes for reporting.

Tim Johnson won second place in personality portrait for this photo of Jon Mayhew.

Timothy Johnson

Tim Johnson won second place in personality portrait for this photo of Jon Mayhew.

Timothy Johnson

Julia Wells won first place in the human interest feature story category for her profile of Lynn and Chris McDonnell, who found peace on the Vineyard after the death of their daughter, Grace.

Bill Eville won first place for obituaries with his remembrance of Don Patrick, known as the grill master of Dock Street Coffee Shop. The Gazette swept this category, winning first, second and third place prizes for its obituary writing. (Remy Tumin won second for her obituary of the artist Ray Ellis, and Olivia Hull won third for her obituary of state forest superintendent John Varkonda. Ms. Hull also won a third in education reporting.)

Sara Brown and Ivy Ashe won first place in science and technology reporting for coverage of emerging efforts to bring the heath hen back from extinction.

Mollie Doyle’s story about a day with Bridget Tobin at the Steamship Authority won first place in the personality profile category.

Meg Robbins won first place in arts and entertainment reporting for a story about a competitive whistler.

The newspaper also won top honors for its design, with a first place for front page design and first place for overall design and presentation going to Stephen Durkee, the Gazette art director.

Second place in pictorial photo went to Tim Johnson.

Timothy Johnson

Second place in pictorial photo went to Tim Johnson.

Timothy Johnson

The Gazette won five photojournalism awards, including three first-place awards. Mark Lovewell won first in personality photography for his portrait of Len Butler at the Gay Head Light. Alison Shaw won first place in pictorial photography for a snowy scene in Oak Bluffs after a blizzard. Ray Ewing won first in the photo series category for a series of images on coastal erosion around the Island. Timothy Johnson won three photography awards, including two seconds and a third.

The Real Estate Yearbook, an annual guide to buying and selling real estate on the Island, won first place for niche publication in advertising and second in editorial.

Other awards included second for an arts and entertainment section, second in the right-to-know category and third place awards for personality profile, general news, feature video, commentary writing and use of social media in breaking news.

The Gazette won second place in advertising general excellence and two third-place advertising prizes.

The annual competition includes entries from weekly and small daily newspapers in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Vermont. There are five circulation categories: two daily, two weekly and one speciality publication category. The Gazette competes in the large weekly category.

The Martha’s Vineyard Times, a weekly newspaper published in Vineyard Haven that competes in the same category as the Gazette, won 12 awards in the competition this year, including a first place for infographics.