The abundance of fish in these waters made the original Waterfall Cannery the most productive in the region. Today, fishing for King Salmon, Coho, Halibut, Ling Cod, and Red Snapper is still second to none.

In the early 1900's, Waterfall was the largest salmon packing plant on the west coast of Prince of Wales Island. Like most canneries in Alaska, this remote operation on the Ulloa Channel was a complete, self-sufficient, temporary community. When the season was over, all but a few workers departed until the next summer's migration.

Innovation set Waterfall apart from other canneries of this era. At a time when wireless radios were unheard of, Waterfall coordinated shipping logistics between the remote cannery and Ketchikan, relying on carrier pigeons to send messages about crew changes and shipments. Each boat took one of these pigeons so that in emergencies a bird was released and in less than an hour help was dispatched.

Many of the present buildings that stand at Waterfall were constructed in the 1930's as part of a major expansion. A warehouse, marine way, oil dock and cable house, webbing and trap cables were built. A store and office building with upstairs living quarters, a new machine shop and storage room were added, along with a mess hall and bunkhouses for inside hands, mechanics and other staff. A new dam and power lines throughout the plant completed the major expansion. The resulting cannery and outbuildings were considered the finest in Southeast Alaska.

With Alaska statehood came severe regulations that made the salmon harvest too unpredictable. In 1973 the cannery and surrounding 34 acres were sold to the Des Moore family and converted into the Waterfall Cannery Resort. In 1980 Waterfall Group, Ltd purchased the operation and all of the buildings were renovated. The white clapboard buildings that once provided lodging for cannery workers today provide comfortable accommodations for guests from all over the world.