Researching warships and auxiliaries of the Royal Navy 1914 to 1918, I have been struck by the size of the shipbuilding industry of Britain and the number of naval dockyards. Following is some of the information unearthed, which perhaps deserves to be better known.

 

Without the ships and their continued repair and maintenance, there could not have been a Royal Navy.

 

by Gordon Smith

 

Contents

 

Part 1

 

THE BRITISH SHIPBUILDING INDUSTRY IN OUTLINE

Shipbuilding Skills
Material & Equipment suppliers

 

Part 2

 PRIVATE MERCANTILE & WARSHIP YARDS IN THE BRITISH ISLES, c 1914-18:

Scotland, Clydeside & Approaches
Scotland, East Coast
Ireland
England, North West
England, North East
Wales & England, South West
England, South East
England, South Coast

 

Part 3

ROYAL & NAVAL DOCKYARDS WORLDWIDE

 

Brief History of The Royal Dockyards of the British Isles

Notes on Admiralty Research Establishments

Royal and Naval Dockyards in 1914 – Home and Abroad

 

 

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Part 1. THE BRITISH SHIPBUILDING INDUSTRY IN OUTLINE

 

 

 

SHIPBUILDING SKILLS

From "British Shipbuilding Yards", Volumes 1, 2, 3, by Norman L Middlemiss, 1995

 

Some of the many and often mysteriously-named crafts and skills needed to build and repair the ships: "Anglesmiths, Blacksmiths, Boatbuilders, Boilermakers, Brass Finishers, Bumpers Up, Burners, Cabinet Makers, Caulkers, Chargehands, Countersinkers, Cranemen, Draughtsmen, Drillers, Electricians, Engineers, Estimators, Fettlers, Fitters, Foremen, Frame Turners, French Polishers, Furnacemen, Holders Up, Iron Saw Men, Joiners, Labourers, Loftsmen, Machinists, Managers, Millwrights, Painters, Pattern Makers, Planers, Platers, Plumbers, Redleaders, Riggers, Riveters, Sailmakers, Sawyers, Scarphers, Stagers, Sheet Metal Men, Shipwrights, Storemen, Toolsmiths, Turners, Welders, Winchmen"

 

 

 

MATERIAL and EQUIPMENT SUPPLIERS

 

Information and images are taken from the advertising pages of the 1914 "Jane's Fighting Ships"

Copyright belonged to the individual companies, many of whom are no longer in existence.

 

The technical, commercial and strategic importance of such companies as shipbuilders John Brown, William Beardmore and Yarrows, all on the Clyde, Vickers of Barrow-in-Furness, Cammell Laird of Birkenhead, Armstrongs, Palmers and Swan-Hunters of Tyneside, Thornycroft of Southampton, White's of the Isle of Wight; boiler-makers Babcock & Wilcox and turbine manufacturers Parsons; ordnance companies such as Vickers (again), Coventry Ordnance; and, for example, steelmakers Thos Firth, Hadfield's, Rotherham Forge, all of Yorkshire, can be gauged from how often they appear in the lists that follow.

 

However, many more and often more specialised companies were needed to build the ships, only some of which are listed here. At advertising rates of £25.0s.0d for a whole page in the 1914 Jane's (perhaps £25,000 at current prices), many more commercial companies would not have chosen to advertise themselves in this otherwise prestigious, but warship-orientated annual.

 

The supporting raw material and fuel industries - coal, iron, copper, steel-making, and as World War 1 approached, petroleum drilling, transporting and refining - should also not be overlooked.

 

Until the advent of iron and steel shipbuilding, most of the major ships were built in the south of England, including many famous ones launched on the River Thames, such as Brunel's giant "Great Eastern". Once iron and the related need for coal predominated, most of the expansion in British shipbuilding took place in Scotland and the NE of England towards the end of the 19th century and into the early 20th.

 

DOCKYARD EQUIPMENT & SERVICES - e.g. Cranes, Crane (Floating), Docks (Floating), Drawing Office Supplies, Dredgers, Engines (Fire), Engines (Railway), Fire & Salvage Boats, Ironwork (Constructional), Model Construction, Motor Cars, Tractors, etc, Photographers (Marine), Railway Wheels, Tyres, Rails, etc, Steel Rolling Shutters, Testing Machines SCOTLAND:   ARROL, Sir William & Co, Anniesland, Glasgow, Lanarkshire BROWN, John & Co, Sheffield, Yorkshire (steel), Clydebank, Dumbartonshire (shipbuilding) ROBERTSON, David & Co (drawing office supplies), Glasgow, Lanarkshire Northern (NW & NE) ENGLAND   ARMSTRONG, Whitworth & Co, Manchester, Lancashire (steel), Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northumberland (Shipbuilding), Erith, Kent (ammunition) CAMMELL Laird & Co, Sheffield, Yorkshire (steel), Birkenhead, Cheshire (shipbuilders) GREENWOOD & Batley Ltd, Leeds, Yorkshire VICKERS Ltd, Barrow-in-Furness, Sheffield, Yorkshire & Birmingham, Warwickshire (steel), Lancashire (shipbuilding), also Crayford, Dartford, Erith, all in Kent WALES & MIDLANDS   BASSETT-Lowke Ltd (model makers), Northampton, Northamptonshire EBBW Vale Steel, Iron & Coal Co, Ebbw Vale, Monmouthshire WOLSELEY Tool & Motor Car Co, Birmingham, Warwickshire (motor cars), East Cowes, Isle of Wight (marine engines) Southern (E, SE & S) ENGLAND:   CRIBB, Stephen (marine photographers), Portsmouth, Hampshire GIBSON, Arthur L, & Co, Twickenham, Surrey HALL, J & E, London EC & Dartford, Kent MERRYWEATHER & Sons, Greenwich, Kent SYMONDS & Co (marine photographers), Portsmouth, Hampshire THORNYCROFT, John I & Co, Basingstoke & Southampton, Hampshire         MACHINE, POWERED & HAND TOOLS - e.g. Drills, Grinding Machinery, Machine Tools, Pneumatic Tools, Stocks, Dies and Taps, Tool Steel and Files, Valve Re-seating Machines, Welding Outfits, Wire Cutters     Armstrong-Whitworth, John Brown, Cammell Laird, Greenwood & Batley, Vickers plus:  SCOTLAND   CRAIG & Donald Ltd, Johnstone, Renfrewshire NW ENGLAND   HULSE & Co, Manchester, Lancashire LUKE & Spencer, Manchester, Lancashire MUIR, Wm & Co, Manchester, Lancashire WIDDOWSON, John H, Salford, Manchester, Lancashire MIDLANDS   COVENTRY Ordnance Works, Scotstoun, Glasgow; Cliffe in NE England; Boston, Lincolnshire; Coventry, Warwickshire; London SIMPLEX Conduits Ltd, Birmingham, Warwickshire SE ENGLAND   BULLIVANT & Co, Millwall, London DIAMOND Blower Co, London EC DRUMMOND Bros, Guildford, Surrey GENERAL Engine Boiler & Co, New Cross, London SE THORN & Hoddle Acetylene Co, London SW               ENGINEERING MATERIALS - e.g. Anti-Friction Metals, Armour Plate, Copper & Alloys, including brass, gun-metal, Glues (Marine), Steel Founders, Steel Plates, Sheets, Bars & Rods, etc, Waterproof and Fireproof Boards     Armstrong-Whitworth, John Brown, Cammell Laird, Ebbw Vale Steel, Vickers plus:  SCOTLAND   BEARDMORE, William & Co, Parkhead (steel), Dalmuir, Dumbartonshire (shipbuilding) DENNYSTOWN Forge Co, Dumbarton, Dumbartonshire Northern ENGLAND   DARLINGTON Forge Co, Darlington, Co Durham FIRTH, Thos & Sons, Sheffield, Yorkshire HADFIELD'S Steel Foundry Co, Sheffield, Yorkshire PARK Gate Iron & Steel Co, Rotherham, Yorkshire ROTHERHAM Forge & Rolling Mills Co, Rotherham, Yorkshire YORKSHIRE Copper Works, Leeds, Yorkshire MIDLANDS   SOMERS, Walter & Co, Halesowen, Worcestershire SE & S ENGLAND   BRAINTREE Castings Co, Braintree, Essex HOYT Metal Co of Gt Britain, London EC JEFFERY'S Patent Marine Glue, Stratford, London E LANGFORD, G & Son (marine glue), Portsmouth, Hampshire TANDEM Smelting Co, Merton Abbey, London SW VENESTA Ltd, London EC         ENGINEERING COMPONENTS - e.g. Axles, Tyres & Springs, Belting, Brake & Clutch Linings, Chain Drives, Gears, Hose Outfits, India-Rubber Goods, Packing and Jointing, Ropes (Wire), Shafting, Steel & Iron Castings & Forgings (including crank shafts, propeller shafts, stern & rudder frames), Tubes, Tubing (Flexible Metallic), Valves     Armstrong-Whitworth, Beardmores, Braintree Castings, John Brown, Bullivants, Cammell Laird, Darlington Forge, Dennystown Forge, Ebbw Vale Steel, Thomas Firth, Hadfields, Merryweathers, Rotherham Forge, Walter Somers, Vickers, Yorkshire Copper plus:  SCOTLAND   AULD, David & Sons, Glasgow, Lanarkshire COCKBURNS Ltd, Cardonald, near Glasgow, Lanarkshire NORTH British Rubber Co, Edinburgh, Midlothian Northern ENGLAND   BENNETT Von der Heyde, J, Manchester, Lancashire DOWNIE, T & Co, Liverpool, Lancashire FROOD Herbert Co, Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire METALLIC Valve Co, Liverpool, Lancashire NEWALL, R S & Son, Liverpool, Lancashire REDDAWAY, F & Co, Manchester, Lancashire RENOLD, Hans Ltd, Manchester, Lancashire SMITH, Thos & Wm, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northumberland WALLWORK, Henry & Co, Manchester, Lancashire SE ENGLAND   DERMATINE Co, London SE DEXINE Patent Packing and Rubber Co, Stratford, London E HULBURD Engineering Co, Fenchurch Street, London EC INTERLOCK Metal Hose Co, Wood Green, London N POWER Plant Co, West Drayton, Middlesex TRIST, Ronald & Co, London EC UNITED Flexible Metallic Tubing Co, Ponders End, Middlesex WESTINGHOUSE Brake Co, King's Cross, London N WILCOX, W H & Co, Southwark, London SE               BOILER & ENGINE ROOM - e.g. Ash Expellers, Boiler Coverings, Boiler Fittings, Boilers, Fire Clay, Flue Blower, Furnace Fittings, Superheaters, Turbine Gears, Turbines     Beardmores, John Brown, Cammell Laird, Cockburns, Diamond Blowers, T Downie, Greenwood & Batley, Metallic Valve, Power Plant Co, Thornycroft, Ronald Trist, Vickers plus:  SCOTLAND   BABCOCK & Wilcox, Renfrew, Renfrewshire FAIRFIELD Shipbuilding & Engineering Co, Govan, Glasgow, Lanarkshire GLENBOIG Union Fire Clay Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire YARROW & Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire NE ENGLAND   NEWALLS Insulation Co, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northumberland PARSONS Marine Steam Turbine Co, Wallsend-on-Tyne, Northumberland WALLSEND Slipway & Engineering Co, Wallsend-on-Tyne, Northumberland SE & S ENGLAND   EVERSHED & Vignolles Ltd, Chiswick, London W STONE, J & Co, Deptford, London SE WHITE, J Samuel & Co, East Cowes, Isle of Wight, Hampshire         ENGINES/PRIME MOVERS - e.g. Engines (Gas), Engines (Marine), Engines (Oil), Engines (Pumping)     Armstrong-Whitworth, Beardmores, Cammell Laird, Fairfield Shipbuilding, Greenwood & Batley, Thornycroft, Vickers, Wallsend Slipway, Westinghouse, Wolseley plus:  SCOTLAND   BROWN Bros & Co, Edinburgh, Midlothian CARRUTHERS, J H & Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire NE ENGLAND   MIRRLEES, Bickerton & Day, Stockport, Cheshire SW ENGLAND   BRAZIL, Straker & Co, Bristol, Gloucestershire               OTHER MARINE ENGINE BUILDERS - not advertising, but listed in Jane's 1914 SCOTLAND   ABERNETHY, J & Co, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire AITCHISON, Blair & Co, Clydebank, Dumbartonshire CAMPBELL & Calderwood, Paisley, Renfrewshire COOPER & Greig, Dundee, Angus DUNSMUIR & Jackson Ltd, Govan, Glasgow, Lanarkshire FISHERS Ltd, Paisley, Renfrewshire GAUDLIE, Gillespie & Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire KINCAID, T G & Co, Greenock, Renfrewshire LIDGERWOOD, W V V, Speedwell Ironworks, Coatbridge, Lanarkshire McKIE & Baxter, Glasgow, Lanarkshire MILLER & Macfie Ltd, Glasgow, Lanarkshire MUIR & Houston Ltd, Glasgow, Lanarkshire RANKIN & Blackmore, Greenock, Renfrewshire RITCHIE, J, Partick, Glasgow, Lanarkshire ROSS & Duncan, Glasgow, Lanarkshire ROWAN, D & Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire NE ENGLAND   AMOS & Smith Ltd, Hull, Yorkshire BLAIR & Co, Stockton-on-Tees, Co Durham CENTRAL Marine Engine Works, West Hartlepool, Co Durham CLARK, G, Ltd, Sunderland, Co Durham DICKINSON, J & Sons, Sunderland, Co Durham GREY, G T, South Shields, Co Durham HOLMES, C D & Co, Hull, Yorkshire McCOLL & Pollock, Ltd, Sunderland, Co Durham NORTH-EASTERN Marine Engineering Co, Wallsend-on-Tyne, Northumberland & Sunderland, Co Durham RICHARDSONS, WESTGARTH & Co, Hartlepool, Co Durham SHIELDS Engineering and Dry Dock Co, North Shields, Northumberland WALLSEND Slipway and Engineering Co, Wallsend, Northumberland Southern ENGLAND   ELLIOTT & Garrood, Ltd, Beccles, Suffolk HOSKING, T, J, Ltd, London PLENTY & Son, Newbury, Berkshire SISSON, W & Co, Gloucester, Gloucestershire VAUXHALL and West Hydraulic Engineering Co, Luton, Bedford, Bedfordshire         PETROLEUM PRODUCTS, HANDLING & FIRING - e.g. Lubricants, Motor Spirit, Oil Cans, Oil Fuel Systems, Oils (Fuel), Oils (Lubricating)     Babcock & Wilcox, Thornycroft, Wallsend Slipway plus:  N ENGLAND   KAYE, Joseph & Sons, Leeds, Yorkshire KERMODE Oil Firing Systems, Liverpool, Lancashire S E ENGLAND   ANGLO-American Oil Co, Westminster, London SW ASIATIC Petroleum Co, London EC DICK, W B & Co, London EC PRATT'S Perfection Motor Spirit, Westminster, London SW VACUUM Oil Co, Westminster, London SW               ENGINEERING PLANT & AUXILIARIES - e.g. Air Compressors, Condensing & Distilling Plants, Fans & Blowers, Hoisting Machinery, Hydraulic Plant, Pumps, Pumps (Air), Ships' Auxiliary Machinery, Steering Gear     Armstrong-Whitworth, Sir William Arrol , Brazil-Straker, Brown Bros, J H Carruthers, General Engine Boilers, Greenwood & Batley, Merryweathers, J Stones, Westinghouse, W H Wilcox plus:  SCOTLAND   HASTIE, John & Co, Greenock, Renfrewshire MIRRLEES Watson & Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire NE ENGLAND   MATTHEWS & Yates Ltd, Swinton, Manchester, Lancashire MIDLANDS & E ENGLAND   BROTHERHOOD, Peter Ltd, Peterborough, Northamptonshire REAVELL, W & Co, Ipswich, Suffolk E & SE ENGLAND   KEITH, James, & Blackman Co, London EC SIEBE, Gorman & Co, London SW WARNER, Robert & Co (Engineers), Westminster, London SW & Walton-on-The-Naze, Essex         ELECTRICAL PLANT & FITTINGS - e.g. Dynamos, Electrical Plant, Generators (Electric), Lamps (Electric), Lamps (Marine), Motors (Electric), Ship Lighting Plant and Accessories     Armstrong-Whitworth, Brazil-Straker, Brotherhoods, Greenwood & Batley, Simplex Conduit, Thornycroft, Vickers, Westinghouse plus:  SCOTLAND   McGEOCH, William & Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire NE ENGLAND   ELECTROMOTORS Ltd, Manchester, Lancashire E ENGLAND   BROOKE, J W & Co, Lowestoft, Suffolk               ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL - e.g. Heating & Ventilating, Ice Making Machinery, Refrigerating Machinery     Greenwood & Batley, J & E Hall, Keith & Blackman, Matthew & Yates, Simplex Conduit, Westinghouse plus:  SCOTLAND   SMITH & Wellstood, Bonnybridge, Stirlingshire SE ENGLAND   SEAGERS, Dartford, Kent         HULL & DECK EQUIPMENT - e.g. Anchors, Boat-Releasing Gear, Capstans, Diving Apparatus, Lifeboats, Motor Boats, Propellers, Searchlights, Sounding Machines, Torpedo Nets and Defences, Yachts & Launches, etc     Armstrong-Whitworth, Brazil-Straker, J W Brooke, Bullivants, General Engine Boilers, Siebe-Gorman, Thornycroft, Vickers, Whites, Yarrow plus:  SCOTLAND   BERGIUS Launch & Engine Co, Glasgow, Lanarkshire KELVIN, Bottomley & Baird Ltfd, Glasgow, Lanarkshire NE ENGLAND   CHARLTON, H & Co, Gateshead-on-Tyne, Co Durham SEAMLESS Steel Boat Co, Wakefield, Yorkshire SE & S ENGLAND   HALL'S Patent Anchor Co, Westminster, London SW HAMBLE River, Luke & Co, near Southampton, Hampshire HEATH & Co, Crayford, Kent ROBINSON, H E C, & Co, Chiswick, London W           CORROSION PROTECTION - e.g. Anti-Fouling & Anti-Corrosive Compositions, Paints, Varnishes, etc SE ENGLAND   BURRELL & Co, Millwall, London EC INDESTRUCTIBLE Paint Co, London EC         SHIP'S BRIDGE EQUIPMENT - e.g. Compasses, Indicators (Helm), Indicators (Revolution), Indicators (Speed), Nautical instruments, Opticians, Ship-Logs, Signalling Systems and Apparatus, Sound Signals, Telegraphs (Ship), Telephones (Loud Speaking)     Diamond Blowers, T Downie, Evershed & Vignolle, Hamble River, Heath & Co, Kelvins, Wm McGeoch plus:  NE ENGLAND   CHADBURN'S (Ship) Telegraph Co, Bootle, Lancashire MIDLANDS & E ENGLAND   CAMBRIDGE Scientific Instrument Co, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire WALKER, Thomas & Son, Birmingham, Warwickshire SE ENGLAND   GRAHAM, Alfred & Co, London SE ROSS Ltd, Clapham, London SW               WEAPONS & ORDNANCE - e.g. Ammunition (War), Explosives (including cordite, guncotton, blasting explosives), Fire Control & Gunnery Fitting, Fuzes & Primers, Guns and Mountings, Projectiles/shells, Rifles and Revolvers, Torpedoes, Torpedo Tubes     Armstrong-Whitworth, Beardmores, Cammell Laird, Coventry Ordnance, Darlington Forge, Evershed & Vignolles, Thomas Firth, Greenwood & Batley, Hadfields, Ross, Vickers plus:  SCOTLAND   BARR & Stroud, Glasgow, Lanarkshire MIDLANDS   WEBLEY & Scott, Birmingham, Warwickshire SE ENGLAND   CURTIS'S & Harvey Ltd, London EC         AVIATION - e.g. Aeroplanes, Seaplanes, and Airships, Engines (Aerial)     Armstrong-Whitworth, Coventry Ordnance, Hamble River, Vickers, Whites, Wolseley