End of an icon

We were saddened to learn of the closing of Stenson's sardine cannery in Prospect Harbor, Maine after 100 years in operation. The cannery was a major employer in an impoversihed portion of the Downeast coast supporting pilots flying single engine planes over the ocean to spot schools of herring, fishermen plying their trade and bringing in the catch, cannery workers emptying boatloads of herring into the process, and women on production lines cutting off heads and tails with shears and packing cans by hand (hands that were covered in bandaids and bandages). The older women featured in recent news stories may be the same women we saw in the 1960's and 1970's when they were young, sharp, and alert.

The cannery was one of our regular field trips for boys and girls attending Mom and Dad's summer school, Winter Habor Reading School, a six-week program to develop reading and study schools in preparation for moving up or improving academically. It was always an experience to remember. Tons of herring being brought into the cannery on conveyor belts. A bit of a gross out to see heads and tails cut off in a flash as the women were piece workers, i.e., paid based on volume of production. Always in a rush. The perhaps apochryphal story of a woman cutting off a finger and packing it with herring. Uggh. Just the thought.

I never liked sardines, though I would take John Michael Hayes, the noted film writer, to Bar Harbor by boat to load up on gourmet foods, including sardines. But the cannery is one of those indelible memories of youth that leave an impression.

Last one out, turn off the lights.