The North Atlantic Fisheries, 1100-1976 - University of Hull

Nowadays the Danish term “klipfisk” is erroneously used for cod that is
only split and salted. To be termed “klipfisk” the split, salted cod must be
further conserved by sun and wind drying, so that the water content is
reduced to a minimum. This dried salted cod was produced both from the
catches which the rowing and motor boats landed fresh in the Faroes and
from the already split and salted cod which the smacks returned from the
fishing grounds around Iceland. The fish that was caught in the inshore
fishery was split, cleaned and salted in the merchant`s warehouse and
was cleaned and dried together with the other fish. The merchant
probably employed a couple of men to split and salt the cod, but he might
well take part in this himself. This fish was kept salted in the warehouse
until the spring, and then all the fish was dried at the same time.
The production of dried salt cod really started after the abolition of
the trade monopoly in 1856. By 1859 it was being produced almost all
over the Faroes, but the production units were of very different types and
sizes. They ranged from a woman on her own who took a quantity of cod
in order to earn a little money by drying it at home, to big workplaces
with factory whistles and works foremen. Actually we see everything
from the small domestic producer to more industrialized work places in
Tórshavn and Tvøroyri. Tvøroyri was originally established as the first
of the royal trade monopoly`s three branches. The village experienced
explosive growth as a consequence of the development of smack
fisheries from the turn of the century. Here too, we find two of the
biggest merchants in the Faroes, owning many smacks. In order to keep
production going it was not only necessary to get crews for the boats
from the other islands, but also girls, many of whom were drawn to this
employment opportunity. They lived in special houses that were rented,
or even specially built, to house the migrant female workforce. 85 It is
important to note that the production of dried salt cod created, for the
first time in the Faroes, a demand for female labour outside the domestic
sphere. Women had now the chance to earn money themselves. Most of
the girls were migrants working with the dried salt cod for a few years of
their lives. The majority stopped when they got married, but the resident
women might work with the fish all their lives. This was perhaps necessary
for economic reasons, because they had been left alone with
children, or because the husband`s income from the fishing was insuffi-
85
Joensen 1982:425, Joensen 1985:118. Lena Nolsøe has treated this subject in an MA
thesis in history (Nolsøe 1986).
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