Cannery Row
The Cannery Row (about literally Cannery row ) is the coastal road and the tourist area of Monterey , California . It takes its name from the many oil sardine factories that were established and operated here between 1895 and around 1950. The street was formerly called Ocean View Avenue , now the nickname is official. After the collapse of the sardine fishery, the road became the tourist hub of Monterey.
history
Beginnings
Monterey is one of the oldest immigrant settlements in California. Since around 1850, primarily Chinese fishermen, and later Portuguese whalers, had settled here. The bubbler was a popular material that was used, among other things, to illuminate the streets of Monterey. When it was later replaced by oil, whaling lost its importance and the Portuguese became farmers or fishermen.
Japanese immigrants specialized after 1890 on the capture of abalone . They brought the necessary diving technique with them, which made collecting the mussels much easier. The previously very dangerous freediving has been replaced. The Japanese later also became important workers on the assembly lines of the canning factories.
The largest group of immigrants in Monterey were the Italians. They specialized in traditional fishing. With their new nets that they brought with them from Sicily , they laid the foundation for the sardine industry. Monterey was then nicknamed "Sardine Capital of the World".
Fish factories
In 1895 Frank E. Booth built the first canned fish factory on Cannery Row. During the following years the preservation technology was continuously improved. The number of factories also increased steadily, especially during the First World War . The number of cans produced rose from 75,000 to 1,400,000 per year between 1915 and 1918. Even after the war, production remained high because the fish dishes were popular. The global economic crisis brought a temporary slump, but with the Second World War , canned food became a key replenishment product again.
The working conditions in the factories were poor. Work began early in the morning with the arrival of the first fishing boats and continued until the processing of the catch was completed. There were no working hours or shift regulations, there was also the considerable smell in the factories and the sometimes dangerous work with knives and on the assembly lines.
After World War II, the collapse of the sardine fishery as a result of overfishing created a severe economic crisis for Cannery Row and its workers. Before the collapse, the fishing industry here was one of the most productive in the world, as a lot of cold but nutrient-rich water rises to the surface on the Pacific coast.
Aftermath
The turning point was brought about by John Steinbeck's novels Die Straße der Ölsardinen (English original title: Cannery Row ) from 1945 and Happy Thursday (English: Sweet Thursday ) from 1954. The books are about Cannery Row and episodically show the living conditions there. They made passionate readers want to see the street with their own eyes in order to be able to absorb the character of the setting. As a result, the street developed into the tourist magnet of Monterey.
In 1984 the famous Monterey Bay Aquarium , one of the largest show aquariums in the world , was built at the north end . Important scientists are committed to the preservation and renaturation of the sea off the coast of Monterey. The marine reserve off Monterey extends from Point Reyes Station to Cambria and covers 5,322 square miles (over 13,700 km²).
Today there are only a few private fishing businesses left on Cannery Row.
Cultural meaning
Steinbeck's novels were filmed in 1982 .
The Pacific Biological Laboratories were from 1928 to 1948 in the Cannery Row. Ed Ricketts , its director, was the role model for a central figure in Steinbeck's novels.
"Cannery Row in Monterey, California is a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream."
literature
- Michael Kenneth Hemp: Cannery Row: The History of John E. Steinbeck's Old Ocean View Avenue . The History Company, 2003, ISBN 0-941425-01-0 .
Web links, sources
- The Cannery Row Foundation
- Cannery Row "Official Website"
- The Pat Hathaway Photo Collection: Cannery Row, Historic Monterey
- NPR's Morning Edition: Ed Ricketts and the 'Dream' of Cannery Row
Web links
Coordinates: 36 ° 36'59 " N , 121 ° 54'2" W.