Short Brothers Limited was a British shipbuilding company formed in 1850 and based at Pallion, Sunderland since 1869. The company closed in 1964 when it failed to invest to build bigger ships. [1]
Short Brothers Limited was a British shipbuilding company formed in 1850 and based at Pallion, Sunderland since 1869. The company closed in 1964 when it failed to invest to build bigger ships. [1]
In 1850 George Short founded a shipyard at Hylton [1] to build small wooden ships for local users. In 1860 Short moved the yard downriver to Pallion and his four sons became partners in the business. [1] In 1871 the yard built its first iron-hulled ship the High Stretfield and the company started using the name Short Brothers. [1] John Y Short became a distinguished naval architect and at the 1878 Paris Exhibition he was awarded a gold medal. [1]
In 1883 Short's built a cargo liner for James Knott's Prince Line of Newcastle upon Tyne. [1] This was the beginning of a 35-year relationship in which Short's supplied Prince Line with a total of 37 ships. [1] They included the passenger liner SS Spartan Prince, built in 1897, which spent its early years of service carrying thousands of Italian migrants to the USA. [2]
In 1895 John Y Short made a substantial investment in John Thomas North's Nitrate Producers' Steamship Company Ltd ("Anglo Line"). [1] Short's went on to supply the line with 30 ships, starting with SS Colonel J.T. North [1] and continuing until at least 1929. [2]
From 1897 Short's undertook contract work for several Tyneside shipyards. [1] In 1900 John Y Short died, his brother Joseph took over and the business was converted from a partnership into a limited company, Short Brothers Limited. [1] The yard now employed 1,500 people. [1]
In the First World War the yard built 14 barges for the Admiralty, plus merchant ships including four cargo ships to the War Shipping Controller's standard B type design. [1] After the war Short's built its first two turbine steamers; [1] the 7,607 GRT sister ships TS Sandown Castle (1921) and TS Sandgate Castle (1922) for Union-Castle Line.
During the 1920s shipbuilding declined. [1] Short's workforce struck in 1923 and 1926 and the yard closed in June 1930. [1]
In 1933 Short's reopened to build SS Arcwear, a tramp steamer designed by Joseph Isherwood. [1] She was the first of Isherwood's new "arcform" design, which increased cargo capacity by 10% and increased speed, but also reduced fuel consumption. [1] Arcwear was launched in November 1933 and made her maiden voyage in 1934. [1] Her fuel economy and speed exceeded expectations but she rolled badly in heavy weather and did not even move smoothly in calm weather. [1] Only a few further arcform cargo ships and tankers were built. [1] In 1938 Short's closed again, despite having a tramp ship still under construction. [1]
In the summer of 1939 Short's reopened again. [1] During the Second World War it built mostly tramp steamers, plus two tankers and one LCT. [1] Under the direction of the Ministry of War Transport by the end of 1944 Short's switched from building ships to its own design to assembling partly prefabricated government standard C-type cargo ships. [1] By the end of the war Short's was employing about 900 people. [1]
In 1946 John H Short was company chairman and H.S. Short, great-grandson of the founder, joined the board of directors. [1]
In the early 1960s the Short family did not want to invest in lengthening the yard's berths to build bigger ships. [1] Therefore, after Short's launched the universal bulk carrier MV Carlton on 17 October 1963 and completed her in January 1964, they closed the business with the loss of 300 jobs. [1]
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