Pusey and Jones

The Pusey and Jones Corporation was a major shipbuilder and industrial-equipment manufacturer. Based in Wilmington, Delaware, it operated from 1848 to 1959.

Shipbuilding was its primary focus from 1853 until the end of World War II, when the company converted the shipyard to produce machinery for paper manufacturing. The yard built more than 500 ships, from large cargo vessels to small warships and yachts, including Volunteer, the winner of the 1887 America’s Cup.

History

The company began in 1848, when Joshua L. Pusey and John Jones formed a partnership in Wilmington, Delaware, to run a machine shop in space rented from a whaling company.[1] The shipyard sat between the Christina River and the main line of the Pennsylvania Railroad.

In 1851, Edward Betts and Joshua Seal, who were operating an iron foundry in Wilmington, purchased an interest in the business. The name of the company became Betts, Pusey, Jones & Seal.[1]

In 1854, Pusey and Jones built the first U.S. iron-hulled sailing vessel: a schooner named Mahlon Betts after Edward's father, who had built the foundry.

At the beginning of the Civil War the company began building vessels for the U.S. military. The first was a sloop of war, which required immediate expansion of the workforce. The company also built engines and boilers for other shipbuilding firms.

In 1887, the company built the first steel-hulled yacht to win the America’s Cup, "Volunteer".

During World War I, the firm grew to more than 2,000 employees. It established the Pennsylvania Shipbuilding Corporation shipyard in Gloucester City, New Jersey,[2] with four ways capable of launching ships up to 12,500 tons and two ways of up to 7,000 tons. Shortly thereafter, the New Jersey Shipbuilding Corporation was formed and their shipyard, which was virtually an addition to the Pennsylvania S.B. yard, was planned to have six slipways for building 5,000-ton cargo steam ships.[3] The keel of the first 7,000dwt tanker was laid on 9 September 1916.[4]

These two yards delivered 20 ships to the United States Shipping Board, all requisitions:

  • 6 tankers of 7,000dwt
  • 11 cargo ships of 12,500dwt
  • 3 cargo ships of 5,000dwt

The Wilmington yard delivered 14 vessels, all requisitions, and two minesweepers for the United States Navy:

After the business slump of the early 1920s, the company reorganized in 1927 under businessman Clement C. Smith, becoming Pusey and Jones Corporation. The company focused on building large luxury steam and motor yachts for wealthy patrons.

As World War II approached, military orders increased. The highest employment was reached during World War II, when more than 3,600 employees worked in the shipyards, plants and offices of the company. Pusey and Jones built 19 Type C1 ships for the U.S. Maritime Commission.

Other craft such as minesweepers were built, along with specialty and smaller vessels. Many commercial and private vessels originally built by the company were also converted to military use.

On Liberty Fleet Day — September 27, 1941 — the yard launched the SS Adabelle Lykes.

After World War II, Pusey and Jones converted the shipyard's facilities to manufacture papermaking machinery.

The company closed in 1959.

Notable vessels

See also

References
  1. Dixon, Stuart Paul (January 1992). "Chap. 4: "THE PUSEY & JONES CO."" (PDF). The Wilmington Waterfront Analysis Area Intensive Level Architectural Survey. City of Wilmington Office of Planning. p. 171. Retrieved September 18, 2013.
  2. "World War I Centennial - World War I Centennial". www.worldwar1centennial.org. Retrieved 2022-11-04.
  3. United States Shipping Board (1922). United States - Norway Arbitration Under the Special Agreement of June 30, 1921. p. 207.
  4. "Pennsylvania Shipbuilding Company Lays Keel of Its First Vessel". International Marine Engineering. October 1916. p. 477.
  5. https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/i/indianapolis-i.html
  6. http://www.navsource.org/archives/12/173865.htm
  7. "A Weil-Balanced Tug Design—Pusey and Jones Deliver Two Unusual Vessels". Pacific Marine Review. 'Official Organ: Pacific American Steamship Association/Shipowners' Association of the Pacific Coast. Consolidated 1940 issues (January): 72. 1940. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  • Lane, Frederic Chapin (2001) [1951]. Ships for Victory: A History of Shipbuilding under the U.S. Maritime Commission in World War II. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press. ISBN 978-0-8018-6752-1. OCLC 45799004.
  • MacTaggart, Ross (2001). The Golden Century, Classic Motor Yachts, 1830–1930. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN 0-393-04949-3.
  • Tyler, David Budlong (1958). The American Clyde; a history of iron and steel shipbuilding on the Delaware from 1840 to World War I. University of Delaware Press.
  • Urban, Richard (1999). The City That Launched a Thousand Ships: Shipbuilding in Wilmington, 1644–1997. Cedar Tree Books. ISBN 1-892142-06-6.
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