Object Catalog Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Unformed one-pound salmon can from Sunny Point Cannery, 1928 |
Object # |
2017.2.19.1 |
Object Name |
Can, Food Storage |
Date |
1928 |
Artist |
Sunny Point Cannery |
Description |
Unformed one-pound salmon can with laquer label from Sunny Point Cannery. The can is tin with a colorful label. The label design has a gold background with a Northern Alaska Native kneeling on ice with a spear in hand. Floating ice and a red and yellow sunset are featured in the background. Text on the front side of the can reads, "VACUUM PACKED/ SUNNY POINT/ SALMON." Text on the back left side reads, "REG. U.S. PAT OFF/ NO. 92141/ CONTENTS/ ONE POUND/ SUNNY POINT/ SELECTED/ ALASKA/ SALMON/ (GORBUSCHA)." Text on the back right side reads, "SUNNY POINT/ SALMON/ PACKED/ IN ALASKA BY/ ALASKA PACIFIC/ SALMON CORP./ COPYRIGHT 1928/ SKINNER & EDDY/ CORPORATION/ SEATTLE, U.S.A./ DISTRIBUTORS." |
Provenance |
When salmon were first packed in cans, all the cans were handmade, mostly by Chinese laborers. At the start of the fishing season, cannery crews assembled cans by cutting sheets of tin to size, shaping them into a round form, and soldering it all together. Poor soldering techniques led to loss from bad seals or a softer twice-cooked product, if the cans could be resealed. Around 1918, collapsed cans became available. They were shipped flat and reformed by machinery at the canneries ensuring a better quality product made it to market. Once formed, cans passed on an assembly line to another machine where the bottom was attached. The partially assembled cans were then ready to be filled with salmon. Full cans of fish passed through a topper to attach the top lid. Once filled and sealed, cans ended in the retort to be pressure cooked. The Sunny Point Cannery was located in the Charcoal Point area along Tongass Avenue. The artwork on the can was copyrighted in 1928. At that time, the cannery was owned by the Skinner & Eddy Corporation in Seattle, who continued to use the Sunny Point name. The can was donated by Karen Hofstad of Petersburg. Karen is a well-known salmon can label and salmon memorabilia collector. She donated her extensive collection to the Alaska State Library in 2017. Her collection is also featured in the 2019 book "Tin Can County" about the history of salmon canneries in Southeast Alaska. |
Material |
Tin |
Dimensions |
W-4.438 L-4.813 D-0.25 inches |
People |
Hofstad, Karen |
Search Terms |
Canneries Canning Fish Related Food Food Preservation Sunny Point Cannery Artifact of the Month article |
Multimedia link |
Link to Artifact of the Month Virtual Exhibit record |
Credit line |
Ketchikan Museums, KM 2017.2.19.1 |