In 1876, State Legislation was amended to recognize, under state law, the sale of salmon from the rivers of Northern California. With an agreement by the Indian Bureau and a Mr. Baumhoff to use only Indian labor, the first commercial saltery opened in 1877.
A gradual shift in Indian attitude, from traditional subsistence and barter fishing to catching fish to sell to the "white-man," took place and by 1889 an Indian fisherman's union was formed. The fishery grew, and by 1912, three canneries were operating at the mouth of the Klamath.
In some of the early years fishing was exceptional. In 1912, the pack of salmon was over 1,384,000 pounds, an estimate of the number of fish caught that year was 141,000.
Good fishing enticed some non-Indians to enter the fishery. At first only those who were married to Indian women were allowed, then some as partners until the "Indian only" rule dissolved. The fleet of skiffs which numbered 40 in 1915 grew to 140 by 1928, and the catch that year dropped to 308,826 pounds.
Fishing was done by night, and during the days the cannery was in full swing processing the previous nights catch. Most of the jobs in the cannery were piece work and were held by women and children. They packed the cans, washed them before packing, and boxed them for shipment down the coast in small steamers.
