Pacific Biological Laboratories
Pacific Biological Laboratories operated as a biological supply company specializing in preserved specimens and prepared microscope slides, many derived from marine and aquatic species. The laboratory provided materials to schools, museums, and research institutions, and was housed in a building located on what is now Cannery Row, overlooking Monterey Bay in Monterey, California.
The building, its enterprise, and its proprietors were immortalized by John Steinbeck in Cannery Row, where it appeared as the “Western Biological Laboratory.” One of the novel’s central figures, inspired by co-founder Ed Ricketts, pays homage to Ricketts’s influence on both the scientific and literary history of the region. Following a 1936 fire, Steinbeck became financially involved in the laboratory, acquiring half of its stock.
Pacific Biological Laboratories
Pacific Biological Laboratories operated as a biological supply company specializing in preserved specimens and prepared microscope slides, many derived from marine and aquatic species. The laboratory provided materials to schools, museums, and research institutions, and was housed in a building located on what is now Cannery Row, overlooking Monterey Bay in Monterey, California.
The building, its enterprise, and its proprietors were immortalized by John Steinbeck in Cannery Row, where it appeared as the “Western Biological Laboratory.” One of the novel’s central figures, inspired by co-founder Ed Ricketts, pays homage to Ricketts’s influence on both the scientific and literary history of the region. Following a 1936 fire, Steinbeck became financially involved in the laboratory, acquiring half of its stock.