Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1881-04-01
Canned Goods.
Ra pid Growth Of one OF the Leading
American Industries.

American Industries.
The American process of canning
articles of food, and thus keeping
them in good condition for an indefi-
mite period, had, like many other
great ideas, very small beginning
t. was first tried in the kitchen of a
private house, by a man who was
working on the theory that fruits
could be preserved by hermetically
sealing them in air-tight cans. His
calculations were found to be correct,
and for some years he kept his secret
to himself, amassing thereby large
fortune, until finally the process be-
came generally known, and began to
be adopted all through the country.
1t was first intended for the pressr-
vation of fruits, but it was found that
other articles could be kept equally
as we'll, and so from this experiment
has grown one of the largest indus
tries of the country, representing
millions of dollars in capital and en-
ploying thousand of people OF both
sexes in raising and preparing the
different articles to be thus preserved.
The business is now not confined to
any particular locality, but is carried
on in all parts of the U nited States,
as we'll as in the different countries
of Europe. Il would be impossible
to go into minute detail concerning
80 extensive an industry; but brief
history Of its origin and growth, to-
gether with something of its present
fourishing condition, may serve to
give our readers some idea of its
magnitude and Importance.
The business is entirely an Ameri-
can idea, and originated in the city
of Baltimore some forty-five years
ago. The gold fever of 1849 in Cali
fornia gave to it its first impetus in
the large quantities of canned goods
sent west for the use of the miners.
The war of the rebellion largely in
creased the sale of these goods, but
it is only within the past four years
that the business has extended so
largely. Goods are now canned in
air .ugt every large city of the United
States, though the bulk OF the trade
is confined to eight, Baltimore TAX
ing the lead. So extensive has this
industry become that it would be i'm
possible to give any estimate of the
amount produced, but an idea may
be formed concerning it from the
fact that some 5000, 900 cans, to be
used for this purpose, were manu-.
factured in Boston alone during the
past year. Some establishments,
which can vegetables and the like
employ thousands Of both sexes in
preparing the different articles dur
ing the producing season, and in the
winter are engaged in the manufac-
ture of cans themselves. Probably
no business has become as wide.
spread in so short period as that
of canning fruits, for it is now car
,ied on all over the country, and is
continually increasing. In the past
year, Baltimore, which seems to be
so located as to obtain the largest
and readiest supply of fruits and
vegetables at less expense than
other cities, put up last year some
five million cans of peaches, tomatoes
and corn, ten million cans of fruit,
and nine million cans of vegetables,
besides immense quantities of fish,
oysters, and other shellfsh, the sea-
son for these latter articles ending
just as the vegetable time begins.
The goods now canned are num-
berless, from the primary idea of
simply preserving fruit, almost every
conceivable article of food is treated
in the same manner. Oysters, clans,
Holsters, soft and hard shelled crabs
are now universally canned, while
among the newer articles in the veg
etable line are string beans, pump
kins squashes, succatash, pineapples
and the like which keep all their
original favors, and can scarcely be
distinguished from the article taken
freshly from the ground. Salmon
and mackerel, chickens, turkeys, and
other fowls are also kept for long
time in this manner, though they
are more perishable than fruits.
Shell fish canning has been in oper-
alton for many years, and is now
carried on extensively, there being
nearly 200 establishments in the city
of Baltimore alone engaged exclusive
ly in packing and handling oysters,
clans and the like.
In the line of fruits there are blue
berries, strawberries, raspberries
blackberries, cherries, damson plums,
ounces, grapes, apricots, &c. These
goods are generally put up with two
dozen cans in a case. and the num-
ber of different brands is surprising.
There are fifteen trademarks in
peaches, three in cherries, four in
tomatoes, three OF pears, five or six
of corn, and so on. There is also
an extensive sale of Boston baked
beans, which are sent away in o
semicooksd state, and although in