Metal containers for sardines and other foods originally were soldered together by hand, one can at a time. The American Can Company initiated machine manufacture in North Lubec then, when its factory burned in 1907, rebuilt in Lubec Village along Johnson Street. The two-story original factory shows here in the near distance.

Thriving demand for cans led to construction of this three-story factory, built mostly on pilings over the water of Johnson Bay, in the late teens of the 20th century. The original building warehoused the stock pending shipping, at one point reaching 350 million cans a year and employing hundreds of Lubec residents. This photo appears to show the factory shortly after its opening. Note the horsedrawn wagon, and on the cliff extreme right worker housing.

American Can shut down in 1972. The buildings were demolished between 1992 and 1995, leaving a bucolic shoreline along Johnson Street with no evidence of the erstwhile factory complex.

This photograph was made with a special camera featuring a slit adjacent to the film affixed to the lens which swept an arc during exposure.