Cannery Row is a waterfront street in the New Monterey neighborhood of Monterey, California, known for formerly being home to a number of now-defunct sardine canneries. The last of these closed in 1973. The street, formerly Ocean View Avenue, was officially renamed in January 1958 to honor John Steinbeck and his novel Cannery Row, though the nickna…Cannery Row is a waterfront street in the New Monterey neighborhood of Monterey, California, known for formerly being home to a number of now-defunct sardine canneries. The last of these closed in 1973. The street, formerly Ocean View Avenue, was officially renamed in January 1958 to honor John Steinbeck and his novel Cannery Row, though the nickname had existed before the book was published. In the novel's opening sentence, Steinbeck described the street as "a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream." The street borders the adjacent city of Pacific Grove.