Our grandmothers Beatrice and Rita MacDonald are two sisters who worked at Johnston’s fish factory (plant) at East Point and after that shut down worked at North Lake. Beatrice and Rita were daughters of Fred and Mamie Cheverie of East Point. Beatrice was born on September 18, 1916. She married James MacDonald of North Lake in 1945. She has resided on the farm at North Lake and continues to live in her own home. Her husband James has passed away in 2001. Rita was born on February 13, 1926. She married Ronnie MacDonald (James’ brother) of East Point in 1953. Rita continues to live on their family farm at East Point with her husband Ronnie.The fish factory at East Point was located on the north shore near East Point where Beaton’s Pond flows out to the sea. The factory was originally owned by George MacIntyre, Montague. Earl and Janet Johnston of Fortune took over the factory in the early 1940's. The factory was open two months (May & June) and processed lobster. The lobsters were caught by the fishermen who fished off the coast around East Point. There were approximately 15 boats that fished in this area. The boats were small with gasoline engines. The boats were moored off the coast in fair weather, but hauled up on the beach when it was windy. They were also beached on the week-end as there was no fishing on Sunday. The fishermen would row their dories out to the boats when they would go fishing.
| The factory employed approximately 35 people (20 women and 15 men). Both men and women were employed at the factory. Most of the workers inside the plant were women and many of them were from the surrounding area of East Point and South Lake. Their jobs were usually inside the plant and their tasks included: taking the meat out of the claws, tails, arms and thumbs of the lobster body, using the wringer to press the meat out of the legs, washing the lobster meat, making the salt brine to put over the meat in the cans, lining the cans with paper, packing the meat, cleaning the equipment and washing up the work place. The men who worked here were usually employed in the heavier work of the plant. |  |
Their jobs included: lifting the crates of live and cooked lobsters, tending the fires and the boilers, cooking the lobsters, operating the sealing machine, cleaning the lobster claws and arms, disposing of the shells and bodies, cooking the sealed cans in a bath or retort, lifting the cases of cans, and using the hose for cleaning the floors and crates and boilers.Many of the jobs that are done by the workers in the fish processing plants today are similar to those used long ago. Workers are still cleaning and taking the meat from the lobster body in much the same way it was done in the past. There is more modern machinery for pressing the meat from the legs and sealing the cans. Fork lifts and conveyor belts are used for moving and lifting the heavy containers.
The people from the area who worked in the factory would commute in the morning and evening. Beatrice and Rita would walk approximately one and one-half miles to the factory both morning and evening, unless they were fortunate to get a ride on the back of someone's truck that was delivering other workers from the South Lake region. Most of the fishermen and some of the workers came from other area of Eastern P.E.I. Some came as far away as Montague and Murray River. They would stay in one of the bunk houses that was on the site. Their only day off was Sunday so many of them would stay and live here for the two months of May and June.
They ate their meals at the cookhouse that was also owned and operated by Earl & Janet Johnston. The fishermen and workers who stayed there would get all their meals there. Some of the ladies from the area worked in the cookhouse. Beatrice worked for 10 years before she was married and Rita worked for 15 years. Rita started when she was still in school working on Saturdays or at times when they were short on crew. Rita worked in the factory for 10 years and then went to work in the cookhouse.
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Women did not wear jeans at this time so their uniform consisted of their dresses, rubber boots, large white rubber aprons tied with binder twine, and felt tams over their hair. The hairnet replaced the tams, during Rita’s last years at the factory.There was no electricity, or heat at the factory or bunkhouse. Their heat consisted of what the lobster cookers and kitchen stove would provide. The light came from the windows and open doors. Their water came from wells with gasoline pumps. Their washroom facilities consisted of enamel basins and outdoor toilets. Wages for factory workers was $1.00 a day. The day started at 7:30 in the morning. Dinner was at 11:00 a.m. and supper was at 4:00 p.m. They would work until 6:00 p.m. or until the everything was cleaned up. All the workers ate dinner and supper at the cookhouse. Meals and lodging were included with their wages. Rita remembers getting $60.00 a month when she worked in the cookhouse at North Lake. The wages were very low compared to today. The minimum wage today is $6.00 an hour, so if a worker worked a minimum wage for 8 hours they would get $48.00 a day. When Beatrice and Rita worked in the fish plant, they needed to save money to help them buy things during the other months of the year. Today workers have benefits such as Employment Insurance during the time they cannot find work.
The factory processed the whole lobster. The meat from claws, tails, arms, thumbs and legs as well as the white meat from the body was packed in ½ pound cans. Each can would hold 3 tails, 4 claws as well as the hash (meat from thumbs, body, arms). The roe and tamale was saved and mixed with cream of wheat to make a lobster spread. This was canned and cooked in the retort the same as the other lobster meat. This spread was used for lobster paste in sandwiches. Some people would mix it with canned chicken haddie to make a mock lobster filling for sandwiches. The shells were stored in a wired framed shell pit outside the factory. Farmers would come with the wagons and take the shells to spread on their land as fertilizer.
The cases of lobster and lobster paste would be trucked to Charlottetown to be shipped off island. Beatrice and Rita didn’t know how much the cans would sell for in the stores. They don’t recall seeing the cans being for sale in the stores around this area.
When asked why they went to work at the factory, they both said that it was the only means of making money around this area at that time. When asked if they remembered what they spent their money on, Beatrice remembers buying new curtains and blinds for her mother and father’s house. She also remembers buying a new coat and hat for herself. Rita remembers buying clothes and a radio for the household during the war.
The factory at East Point closed up when Johnstons were given the opportunity to purchase the factory at North Lake. Some of the buildings were torn down but the best ones were hauled to North Lake to be used there. Both Beatrice and Rita went to work at North Lake. The operation at North Lake was much bigger and they remember processing codfish and mackerel during July and August.
They remember that the work was hard but both Beatrice and Rita remember some of the fun times they had with co-workers. They both recall one particular worker who liked to play practical jokes on unsuspecting co-workers. The rubber boots worn during the day were left in the factory until the next day and more than one worker found their boots nailed to the floor in the morning. The aprons were tied on with bailer twine and often an unsuspecting worker would find the twine cut from behind and and the apron falling on the floor. They also recall that it was a chance to meet and socialize with other young people in the area.
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