Flakes, ca. 1910. Maine State Museum 82.88.26; 82.88.27.
Flakes, ca. 1910. Maine State Museum 82.88.26; 82.88.27.
In sardine processing, women and children speared as many small fish as possible on these wooden sticks called flakes. The workers placed these simple sticks in ovens to steam-cook, or cure, the fish.
One 13-year-old fish curer reported to Maine’s Bureau of Industrial and Labor Statistics inspector: "I put the fish on flakes and get 5 cents a dozen flakes of 120 to 150 fish to a flake. I can do six dozen in 9 or 10 hours and when I get that number done I go home. In hot days when the fish are soft it takes longer. I get very tired and the odor often makes me sick."