Short Brothers of Sunderland

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For the aircraft builders, see Short Brothers.

Ritratto della steam ship Magnus Mail in navigazione, painted in 1895 by . Short Brothers built SS Magnus Mail in 1889.

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]

19th century[]

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 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 , 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 [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]

20th century[]

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 (1921) and (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]

on sea trial in 1934

In 1933 Short's reopened to build , 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 on 17 October 1963 and completed her in January 1964, they closed the business with the loss of 300 jobs.[1]

SS Cacique, built by Short Brothers in 1910
  • 1889 – SS Magnus Mail – hull 184
  • 1892 –
  • 1910 – SS Cacique
  • 1918 – SS Clan Macvicar
  • 1927 – – hull 425
  • 1940 –
  • 1941 –
  • 1941 – SS Empire Burton – hull 466
  • 1941 –
  • 1941 –
  • 1941 –
  • 1942 – SS Empire Bardolph – hull 474
  • 1942 –
  • 1942 –
  • 1942 –
  • 1942 – SS Empire Envoy
  • 1943 – SS Empire Friendship
  • 1943 – SS Empire Camp
  • 1943 –
  • 1943 – SS Empire Duchess
  • 1943 – SS Empire Cromer – hull 480
  • 1944 –
  • 1945 – SS Empire Nairobi
  • 1945 –
  • 1945 – SS Empire Dominica
  • 1946 – MV Empire Tedburgh
  • 1952 – MV Burutu Palm

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac "Short Brothers of Sunderland". The Best of British Engineering 1750s – 1960s. Grace's Guide. 29 January 2009. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
  2. ^ a b Searle, Peter. "Page 055 The Shipbuilders – page 021". The Sunderland Site. Peter Searle. Retrieved 29 June 2011.

External links[]

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