[Loscho_Enews] New Edmonds Museum Exhibit - The Wiggle in Its Tail

[Snocoheritage]

The Wiggle in Its Tail: A Short History of Canned Salmon Labels"

It was the heyday of the Pacific Northwest canned salmon industry, and
packing plants ran day and night filling warehouses with 8.5 million cases
of canned salmon each year.
To help keep this huge inventory moving the business of selling salmon soon
became as large as the business of processing it, as packers developed a
sophisticated advertising
strategy that relied primarily on colorful labels designed to target
consumers at home and abroad.

Between 1890 and 1950 marketing strategies, corporate intrigue, Native
history, contemporary fashion trends, food safety laws, and issues of class
and race all came
together in an explosion of distinctive brand names, colorful, eye-catching
labels, and images tailored to appeal to the perceived tastes of consumers.
Labels might feature portraits of national heroes or landmarks, mothers,
nannies, cooks, mermaids, white fishermen catching salmon on a line, Native
fishermen using spears or dip nets, all of which evoked the wholesomeness
of the product and obscured the messy industrial process behind the canning
operation.

Although works of art in their own right, the labels also tell us something
of the history of this important industry.

Learn about this colorful chapter in our region's past when the University
of Washington's Ross Coen, an expert on the northwest salmon canning
industry, speaks at
the Edmonds Historical Museum, 118 5th Avenue North, on Thursday, September
8 from 7-9 pm. His talk will illuminate this colorful chapter in our
region's history, focusing in
particular on the imagery of canned salmon labels, their historical
relevance, and how they were successfully used to market this product
worldwide. The presentation includes
photos of dozens of rare labels, and Coen’s personal collection of original
labels.

Space is limited. Cost is $5 for Museum members, $10 for non-members.
To reserve your space, call or email Museum Director Katie Kelly at
425-774-0900 or
director at historicedmonds.org.

In addition to being the custodian of our local history, the Edmonds-South
Snohomish County Historical Society and Museum is an active member of the
community,
sponsoring numerous events throughout the year. These include the annual
Scarecrow Festival, the Summer Farmers' Market and Spring Garden Market,
the Halloween
Haunted Museum, and the annual Heritage Days Banquet and Auction.

The Museum is located in Edmonds' historic 1910 Carnegie Library at 118
Fifth Avenue North. It is open year-round between 1 and 4 p.m. Wednesday
through Sunday, but opens
early on market days. Suggested donation in lieu of an admission fee is $5
for adults,
and $2 for students.
Learn more at the Museum's website, http://www.historicedmonds.org/

Forwarded by --
Karen Prasse
League of Snohomish County Heritage Organizations
snocoheritage at gmail.com
www.snocoheritage.org
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