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Monterey in Monterey County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
 

The Spanish Community

Historic Cannery Row

 
 
The Spanish Community Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, April 23, 2012
1. The Spanish Community Marker
Inscription. During World War I and the decade that followed, much of the workforce in the developing sardine industry along Cannery Row was made up of Spanish immigrants, who had fled crushing poverty for the promise of a new life. Many single men sailed from the port of Malaga in southern Spain, stopping at the Hawaiian Islands to work as contract laborers before reaching California.

The first Spanish migrant generation established a pattern of movement between Monterey and the Santa Clara Valley, where they harvested fruit and prune orchards between fishing seasons. In the canneries, a Spanish migrant might work as a boilerman, whistling crews to work when a fresh catch arrived, or a seamer, sealing the oval sardine cans. They helped sardine production grow to 1,400,000 cases by 1918.

In their limited free time, single men smoked hand-rolled cigarettes of Tobacco de la Libre, read the Spanish newspaper La Prensa and conversed with their countrymen. They played the songs of their homeland on guitars and mandolins while sharing the muscatel wine that was produced in neighborhood garages.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1918.
 
Location. 36° 37.026′ N, 121° 54.089′ W. Marker is in Monterey
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, California, in Monterey County. Marker can be reached from Bruce Ariss Way. This marker, with several others, is located on Bruce Ariss Way, a walking path/stairway, between Cannery Row and the Monterey Recreation Trail. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Monterey CA 93940, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A Day in the Canneries (here, next to this marker); The Japanese Community (a few steps from this marker); The Real “Docs” (a few steps from this marker); One Man, Two Worlds (a few steps from this marker); The Filipino Community (a few steps from this marker); John Steinbeck (within shouting distance of this marker); Jone Quock Mui (within shouting distance of this marker); Ed Ricketts’s Backyard (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Monterey.
 
The Spanish Community Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, April 23, 2012
2. The Spanish Community Marker
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on May 6, 2012, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 507 times since then and 6 times this year. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on May 6, 2012, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 19, 2024