Yes, I remember my mother. She would come home sometimes in the middle of the night and sometimes they would come home early. They wouldn’t know. If they had one boat in, it wouldn’t take that long. I remember her getting up and going. Putting her apron on and her hat, getting her lunch ready the night before. But in the old factory there was a couple that would come over like … [Read more...]
The Last Sardine Cannery
Through the middle of the 20th century there were as many as 75 canneries up and down the coast of Maine, providing employment and an abundant food source for Maine and the nation. At the sound of the factory whistle, cannery workers came and packed fish, staying on the job until an entire boatload of fish was processed. By the 1970's the canneries were declining, and the last sardine cannery in the U.S., at Prospect Harbor, ME closed in April of 2010. This page contains links to transcripts and recordings of conversations with cannery workers.