A Pygmy Monopolist: The Life and Doings of R. D. Hume

Hume Was Born In Augusta, Maine On The Kennebec River, One Of The Original Canning Sites Of Salmon Fishing In The United States. He Followed The Trade Across The Country To California In 1863 To Join His Brothers Who Were The First To Can Salmon On The Pacific Coast. Following The Decline Of The Salmon Runs On The Sacramento River, The Hume Family Then Pioneered In The Development Of Fish Canning On The Columbia River Which They And Later Entrepreneurs Made The World’s Largest Canned Salmon Source. In 1877 R. D. Hume Opened A Cannery On The Rogue River In Southwestern Oregon And Later Was One Of The First To Exploit The Last Salmon Frontier, Alaska.