One of the dark secrets of the west coast salmon canning trade in the early 20th century was the notorious life aboard the Hell Ships, made infamously known by Max Stern’s detail expose in 1922. Gambling, bootlegging, profiteering, exploitation, disease, even death marked the voyage that Stern took aboard the wooden clipper Emily F. Whitney. It took one month to reach Bristle Bay, Alaska. However, the drama allowed Stern to fill pages of San Francisco Daily with his month-long adventures on the high sea. But just imagine how the story would turn out if the mode of transportation were different … Continue reading Windjammer vs. Steamer