Tampa Shipbuilding Company

Last updated

Tampa Shipbuilding Company, or TASCO, was one of a number of shipyards in Tampa, Florida. It operated from 1917 to after World War II, closing in 1947. The site is now Gulf Marine Repair which operates with floating dry docks. [1] [2]

Contents

History

Origins

Originally Tampa Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, founded in 1917, the yard built ships under the United States Maritime Commission's pre-war long-range shipbuilding program. It was also called the Tampa Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company. It would use the facilities of the Tampa Foundry & Machine Co. Tampa Foundry that ceased to exist in 1916. The Tampa Foundry was established in 1892 and was later incorporated in 1905. [3]

World War II mobilization

The company would borrow $750,000 dollars in 1938 from the Public Works Administration to help pay for the construction of a 10,000-ton dry dock that was being built. The drydock would end up being constructed and afterwards in 1939, they would be awarded a contract worth $8 million to build four cargo ships. The growth in the shipyard would result in about 2,000 new jobs being created and helped to combat unemployment in the city. They company would end up only producing one of the ships in the contract, MS Sea Witch as the company would announce it was in bad financial shape. [4]

As a result of the company going into a bad financial state, the Maritime Commission and Reconstruction Finance Corporation (that had assumed the PWA loan) to try and find new owners for the company, replacing Ernest Kreher. George B. Howell who worked for the Exchange National Bank would be encouraged by this to buy the company for $500. Howell would be charged by the US Accounting Office of illegally selling ships and overcharging the US Navy. Despite being charged, he would never be prosecuted. [4] The shipyard was renamed to Tampa Shipbuilding Company (TASCO) after it was sold. [3]

World War II activities

During the war, TASCO was one of four other shipyards in Tampa. The other three being: Bushnell-Lyons; Tampa Marine; and Hooker's Point Yard, started by Matthew H. McCloskey, Junior. [5] TASCO was the largest company that existed. [6] A company newspaper published during World War II was titled the Tascozette. [7]

African American workers who worked in shipyards were usually excluded from joining local unions as it was common during that time period to not accept them. Those in the shipyard who were African American usually worked as cooks, assistants, janitors and learners which were some of the only job positions they could take. The jobs available to African American workers were not unionized in general. The accomplishments of African American workers were rarely if never highlighted in the company newspapers of the shipyards in Tampa. 17% of workers at the shipyard were female making it twice the rate it was at the national level. [7]

Apart from doing work at the shipyard during World War II, recreational activities were also provided for workers there. A bowling, softball and basketball league was created at the shipyard. Eventually a swim club and fencing club would be established along with volleyball, tennis and badminton would also being introduced. A radio program would be created by the management of the shipyard. An RCA recording would be broadcast from the Morale Department located in the yard originally being an hour long program at noon. The radio program would be expanded in October 1944 and would also include songs requested by employees. [8]

Ships built during World War II

USS Cates USS Cates (DE-763).jpg
USS Cates

Immediately before and during the United States entry into the Second World War the company built US Navy auxiliaries. Tampa Shipbuilding built: Admirable-class minesweepers and Type C2 cargo ships, like USS Lassen, USS Mauna Loa and MS Sea Witch, which gained some note in a last attempt to deliver U.S. Army planes to Java, though the twenty-seven crated P-40s had to be destroyed after delivered to prevent them from falling into Japanese hands. [9] During the war TASCO also built Cannon-class destroyer escorts like USS Cates, USS Sutton and USS Slater. At its peak, it was the largest employer in Tampa, employing 16,000 people. Tampa Shipbuilding closed after the war in 1947, and few traces remain of its facilities. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newport News Shipbuilding</span> American shipyard

Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS), a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, is the sole designer, builder, and refueler of aircraft carriers and one of two providers of submarines for the United States Navy. Founded as the Chesapeake Dry Dock and Construction Co. in 1886, Newport News Shipbuilding has built more than 800 ships, including both naval and commercial ships. Located in the city of Newport News, its facilities span more than 550 acres (2.2 km2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mare Island Naval Shipyard</span> United States historic place

The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located 25 miles (40 km) northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates the peninsula shipyard from the main portion of the city of Vallejo. MINSY made a name for itself as the premier U.S. West Coast submarine port as well as serving as the controlling force in San Francisco Bay Area shipbuilding efforts during World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philadelphia Naval Shipyard</span> Naval shipyard of the United States

The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was the first United States Navy shipyard in the United States and continued to be an important one for almost two centuries.

<i>Admirable</i>-class minesweeper Class of USN minesweepers

The Admirable class was one of the largest and most successful classes of minesweepers ordered by the United States Navy during World War II. Typically, minesweepers detected and removed naval mines before the rest of the fleet arrived, thereby ensuring safe passage for the larger ships. They were also charged with anti-submarine warfare (ASW) duties with rear-mounted depth charge racks and a forward-firing Hedgehog antisubmarine mortar. Their job was essential to the safety and success of U.S. naval operations during World War II and the Korean War. These minesweepers were also employed as patrol vessel and convoy escorts.

Avondale Shipyard was an independent shipbuilding company, acquired by Litton Industries, in turn acquired by Northrop Grumman Corporation. In 2011, along with the former Ingalls Shipbuilding, the yard was part of Huntington Ingalls Industries. It closed in October 2014. The yard was located on the west bank of the Mississippi River in an area called Bridge City, about 20 miles (32 km) upriver from New Orleans near Westwego, Louisiana. It was the site of the modernization of the battleship USS Iowa in the early 1980s and also constructed some of the lighter aboard ships (LASH). At one time, it was the largest employer in Louisiana, with about 26,000 employees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fore River Shipyard</span> Shipyard in Massachusetts, United States

Fore River Shipyard was a shipyard owned by General Dynamics Corporation located on Weymouth Fore River in Braintree and Quincy, Massachusetts. It began operations in 1883 in Braintree, and moved to its final location on Quincy Point in 1901. In 1913, it was purchased by Bethlehem Steel, and later transferred to Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation. It was sold to General Dynamics in 1963, and closed in 1986. During its operation, yardworkers constructed hundreds of ships, for both military and civilian clients.

USS <i>Lassen</i> (AE-3) Ammunition ship of the United States Navy

USS Lassen (AE-3) was built as MS Shooting Star under a U.S. Maritime Commission contract, was delivered to the U.S. Navy after sea trials, and became an ammunition cargo ship during World War II. Like many Naval ships of this category that carried large amounts of explosive cargo, she was named for a volcano. In this case, the ship was named for Lassen Peak, a volcano in northern California that erupted heavily in 1914–17.

USS <i>Mauna Kea</i> Ammunition ship of the United States Navy

USS Mauna Kea (AE-22) was a Suribachi-class ammunition ship of the United States Navy that was laid down at the Bethlehem-Sparrows Point Shipyard Inc., Sparrows Point, Maryland, on 6 May 1955; launched on 3 May 1956; sponsored by Mrs. Charles R. Brown; and commissioned on 30 March 1957, Captain Kenneth Loveland in command. The ship was decommissioned 30 June 1995 with over 38 years of active service. Mauna Kea was the oldest active ship in the Navy for a single week prior to being decommissioned.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft</span> German shipbuilding company

Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft is a German shipbuilding company, headquartered in Kiel. It is part of the ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) group, owned by ThyssenKrupp. The Howaldtswerke shipyard was founded in Kiel in 1838 and merged with Hamburg-based Deutsche Werft to form Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in 1968. The company's shipyard was formerly used by Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft until the end of World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company</span> 1917–1948 shipbuilding company in the United States

The Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company was a United States shipyard in New Jersey active from 1917 to 1948. It was founded during World War I to build ships for the United States Shipping Board. Unlike many shipyards, it remained active during the shipbuilding slump of the 1920s and early 1930s that followed the World War I boom years. During World War II, it built merchant ships as part of the U.S. Government's Emergency Shipbuilding program, at the same time producing more destroyers for the United States Navy than any yard other than the Bath Iron Works. Operated by a subsidiary of the United States Steel Corporation, the shipyard was located at Kearny Point where the mouth of the Hackensack River meets Newark Bay in the Port of New York and New Jersey.

North Carolina Shipbuilding Company was a shipyard in Wilmington, North Carolina, created as part of the U.S. Government's Emergency Shipbuilding Program in the early days of World War II. From 1941 through 1946, the company built 243 ships in all, beginning with the Liberty ship SS Zebulon B. Vance, and including 54 ships of the US Navy. Most of the latter were attack cargo ships (AKA), amphibious force flagships (AGC) and ammunition ships (AE). A list of all 54 Navy ships appears at the end of this article, as does a link to a detailed record of all ships built by the company.

Type C3-class ship Ship type

Type C3-class ships were the third type of cargo ship designed by the United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) in the late 1930s. As it had done with the Type C1 ships and Type C2 ships, MARCOM circulated preliminary plans for comment. The design presented was not specific to any service or trade route, but was a general purpose ship that could be modified for specific uses. A total of 162 C3 ships were built from 1939 to 1946.

<i>Auk</i>-class minesweeper 1942 class of minesweepers of the United States Navy

The Auk class were a class of minesweepers serving with the United States Navy and the Royal Navy during the Second World War. In total, there were 93 Auks built.

USS <i>Amphion</i> (AR-13)

USS Amphion (AR-13) was the lead ship of her class of repair ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. The second U.S. Navy vessel to be named Amphion, she was not commissioned until January 1946, five months after the end of the war. She was decommissioned in September 1971 and transferred to the Imperial Iranian Navy as IIS Chahbahan. She was purchased outright by Iran in March 1977. After the 1979 Iranian Revolution she remained in service with the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy through at least 1985. Her fate beyond that date is not reported in secondary sources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Willamette Iron and Steel Works</span>

SS <i>Mauna Loa</i> American cargo ship

SS Mauna Loa was a steam-powered cargo ship of the Matson Navigation Company that was sunk in the bombing of Darwin in February 1942. She was christened SS West Conob in 1919 and renamed SS Golden Eagle in 1928. At the time of her completion in 1919, the ship was inspected by the United States Navy for possible use as USS West Conob (ID-4033) but was neither taken into the Navy nor commissioned.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winslow Marine Railway and Shipbuilding Company</span> American shipyard (1903 to 1959)

Winslow Marine Railway and Shipbuilding Company was a shipyard in Puget Sound that operated from 1903 until 1959 on Bainbridge Island, Washington, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Todd Pacific Shipyards, Los Angeles Division</span> American shipyard in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California

Todd Pacific Shipyards, Los Angeles Division was a shipyard in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California. Before applying its last corporate name, the shipyard had been called Los Angeles Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company and Todd Shipyards, Los Angeles Division. Under those three names, the San Pedro yard built at least 130 ships from 1917 to 1989.

USS <i>Deucalion</i>

USS Deucalion (AR-15) was the third ship of the Amphion-class of repair ship built for the United States Navy by Tampa Shipbuilding Company during World War II. Named after Deucalion the mythological king of Thessaly, her keel was laid down on December 15, 1944, but her construction was canceled on August 12, 1945, shortly after the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bethlehem Beaumont Shipyard</span> Beaumont, Texas American shipyard company

Bethlehem Beaumont Shipyard was a shipyard in Beaumont, Texas that opened in 1948. The yard is located on an island in the Neches River and upstream of the Sabine Pass that grants access to the Gulf of Mexico. The deep-water port shipyard was founded in 1917 as the Beaumont Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company. Beaumont Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company started as a World War I Emergency Shipbuilding Program yard.

References

  1. ↑ Tampa shipbuildinghistory.com, Shipbuilding (TASCO), Tampa FL
  2. ↑ Gulf Marine Repair website
  3. 1 2 3 T. Colton 2013.
  4. 1 2 Wynne, Lewis (1990). "Shipbuilding in Tampa During World War II". Sunland Tribune. 16– via Scholar Commons.
  5. ↑ Shipbuilding in Tampa During World War II|https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1214&context=sunlandtribune
  6. ↑ Tanner, Stacy (Spring 2007). "Progress and Sacrifice: Tampa Shipyard Workers in World War II". Florida Historical Quarterly . 85: 5 – via JSTOR.
  7. 1 2 Tanner, Stacy (Spring 2007). "Progress and Sacrifice: Tampa Shipyard Workers in World War II". Florida Historical Quarterly. 85 (4): 11–12 – via JSTOR.
  8. ↑ Tanner, Stacy (Spring 2007). "Progress and Sacrifice: Tampa Shipyard Workers in World War II". Florida Historical Quarterly. 85 (4): 28–30 – via JSTOR.
  9. ↑ Craven & Cate 1948, p. 397.

Tampa Shipbuilding (TASCO), Tampa FL

27°56′38″N82°26′28″W / 27.943955°N 82.441188°W / 27.943955; -82.441188

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.