Cannery Row & the Steinbeck Era

Cannery Row & the Steinbeck Era

Sardines, Steinbeck & the Rise and Fall of an Industry (1900–1950s) · Monterey County

In the early 20th century, Monterey became one of the world's largest sardine fishing and canning centers. At its peak, Cannery Row processed 250,000 tons of sardines per year. The industry attracted workers from around the world, shaped the city's character, and inspired John Steinbeck's most beloved works — before collapsing almost overnight.

Timeline

1902

First Cannery Opens

Frank Booth opens the first commercial sardine cannery on what would become Cannery Row. The Pacific sardine, found in vast schools in Monterey Bay, proves easy to catch and process. Within a decade, a dozen canneries line Ocean View Avenue.[1]

1928

Steinbeck Works the Row

John Steinbeck works briefly at the Hovden Cannery in 1928 and absorbs the culture that will define 'Cannery Row' (1945) and 'Sweet Thursday.' At its peak the street employed thousands of immigrant Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Spanish, and Italian laborers and ran 24 hours during sardine season. The stench was legendary.[2]

1945

Steinbeck Publishes Cannery Row

John Steinbeck's novel 'Cannery Row' immortalizes the street and its characters — based on real people including marine biologist Ed Ricketts (Doc in the novel), whose Pacific Biological Laboratories still stands at 800 Cannery Row. The building is a California Historical Landmark.[2]

1952

The Sardine Collapse

The Pacific sardine population collapses dramatically due to a combination of overfishing and a natural ocean cycle shift. By 1952, almost all canneries have closed. Workers leave; buildings stand empty. The Row that Steinbeck celebrated exists only in his pages.[3]

1984

Aquarium Reinvents the Row

The Hovden Cannery — the last to close in 1973 — is transformed into the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which opens in 1984 and becomes one of the world's premier marine science institutions. Cannery Row reinvents itself around tourism, while Steinbeck's legacy draws literary travelers from around the world.[4]

Then & Now

Archive photos paired with the same place today.

Then, c. 1972: Looking down Cannery Row toward the abandoned sardine factories — photographed for the EPA Documerica project a generation after the fishery collapsed.Then · c. 1972

Looking down Cannery Row toward the abandoned sardine factories — photographed for the EPA Documerica project a generation after the fishery collapsed.

Photo: Dick Rowan / U.S. National Archives via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

Now, Today: The same shoreline, redeveloped into restaurants, hotels, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium that anchors the modern Row.Now · Today

The same shoreline, redeveloped into restaurants, hotels, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium that anchors the modern Row.

Photo: MontereyBay.app

Real places in our directory connected to Cannery Row & the Steinbeck Era.

Sources

Citations behind the dates, names, and numbers on this page.

  1. 1
    Monterey County Historical Society — Cannery Row

    Local-history record of the 1902 first cannery and the row’s peak years.

  2. 2
    National Steinbeck Center — About John Steinbeck

    Steinbeck biographical timeline (Salinas, Cannery Row, Pacific Biological Laboratories).

  3. 3
    NOAA Fisheries — Pacific sardine population history

    Primary source for the post-1945 sardine fishery collapse.

  4. 4
    Monterey Bay Aquarium — Our story

    1984 opening date and conversion of the former Hovden Cannery building.

  5. 5

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