Ward Collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1967 ISM.NYSB.Ward Finding aid prepared by Matt Herbison This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit May 09, 2012 Describing Archives: A Content Standard Independence Seaport Museum, J. Welles Henderson Archives and Library May 2010 Penn's Landing on the Delaware River 211 South Columbus Blvd. and Walnut St. Philadelphia, PA, 19106 +1.215.413.8639 library@phillyseaport.org
Table of Contents Summary Information... 3 Biographical/Historical note... 5 Scope and Contents note... 5 Administrative Information...6 Related Materials... 7 Controlled Access Headings...7 Collection Inventory... 9 Shipbuilding Contract Material... 9 New York Shipbuilding Publications...10 Merritt-Chapman & Scott Publications...16 Histories and Clippings Regarding New York Shipbuilding...17 US Navy Publications on Policies, Procedures, and Specifications... 18 Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company Materials... 21 Other Publications...22 - Page 2 -
Summary Information Repository Independence Seaport Museum, J. Welles Henderson Archives and Library Creator New York Shipbuilding Corporation. Title Ward collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material Date [bulk] Bulk, 1954-1967 Date [inclusive] 1919-1969 Extent 2.5 Linear feet Language English Abstract The New York Shipbuilding Corporation (NYS) was founded in 1899 by Henry G. Morse (1850-1903), who served as the company s first president. The company held significant government contracts during both World Wars, and built ships for the United States Navy, Coast Guard, and Emergency Fleet Corporation as well as the Department of Commerce and Labor. During the 1930s, the company built luxury ocean liners, such as the Manhattan and the Washington for the United States Lines, and also built ships for Pennsylvania Railroad, Reading Railroad, Standard Oil and American Export Lines. During its tenure, the New York Shipbuilding Corporation constructed over 500 ships. NYS completed its last ship in 1967 and went out of business shortly thereafter. The bulk of the collection appears to have been work-related materials used by John F. Ward, a New York Shipbuilding employee in the 1950s and 1960s. The collection includes material from 1919 to 1969, with the bulk of the material from the 1950s and 1960s. Much of the material covers technical and engineering aspects of work being performed at the shipyard, but also includes some items that many employees of the shipyard would - Page 3 -
have received, such as a 1959 "Rules of Safety" manual. The collection contains a number of publications, written histories, and clippings that detail the history of the shipyard at several times throughout its existence. Preferred Citation note [Description and date of item], [ and folder number], Ward collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1969, Independence Seaport Museum Archives, Philadelphia. - Page 4 -
Biographical/Historical note The New York Shipbuilding Corporation (NYS) was founded in 1899 by Henry G. Morse (1850-1903), who served as the company s first president. The name reflects its originally intended location on Staten Island; although the name was already incorporated, land was cheaper in Camden, New Jersey, so Morse built the shipyard there instead. According to the history of the first fifty years of the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, "at the outset, it was decided to break away from the old century's accepted practices of ship building and build a yard in which could be applied the most up-to-date labor-saving machinery and advanced methods of structural steel construction," (NYS, page 11). As a result, "a revolutionary idea of connecting all the parts of the yard with overhead cranes, making the transportation of materials significantly easier," (ELSLAW) was implemented. During its tenure, the New York Shipbuilding Corporation constructed over 500 ships. The company held significant government contracts during both World Wars, and built ships for the US Navy, the Coast Guard, the Emergency Fleet Corporation and the Department of Commerce and Labor. However, NYS did not rely only on governmental commissions. During the 1930s the company was responsible for the completion of luxury ocean liners, such as the Manhattan and the Washington, both of the United States Lines, and also built ships for Pennsylvania Railroad, Reading Railroad, Standard Oil and American Export Lines. In addition to American contracts, some notable commissions came from international clients. NYS built a battleship for Argentina, a fuel ship for Japan, and a Protected Cruiser for Greece. Merritt-Chapman & Scott, a marine salvage and construction firm, acquired NYS in 1953. The shipyard completed its last ship in 1967 and went out of business shortly thereafter. Scope and Contents note The bulk of the collection appears to have been work-related materials used by John F. Ward, a New York Shipbuilding employee in the 1950s and 1960s. The collection includes material from 1919 to 1969, with the bulk of the material from the 1950s and 1960s. Much of the material covers technical and engineering aspects of work being performed at the shipyard, but also includes some items that many employees of the shipyard would have received, such as a 1959 "Rules of Safety" manual. The collection contains a number of publications, written histories, and clippings that detail the history of the shipyard at several times throughout its existence. This collection is arranged into seven series: "Shipbuilding Contract Material," "New York Shipbuilding Publications," "Merritt-Chapman & Scott Publications," "Histories and Clippings regarding New York - Page 5 -
Shipbuilding," "US Navy Publications on Policies, Procedures, and Specifications," "Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company Materials," and "Other Publications." "Shipbuilding Contract Material" includes correspondence regarding ship construction and publications featuring the USS Kitty Hawk and Nuclear Ship Savannah. It also includes lists of all New York Shipbuilding contracts as well as plans of the shipyard property. Related materials published by the Navy between 1939 and 1969 are included in the series "US Navy Publications on Policies, Procedures, and Specifications." "New York Shipbuilding Publications" include yard newsletters from 1919 to 1921 and a single issue from 1959. The published marketing material includes several New York Shipbuilding histories, promotional brochures, annual reports -- these items, while not comprehensive, give a roughly once-adecade view of how the company was marketing itself between the 1920s and 1960s. This information is supplemented by the material in the "Histories and Clippings Regarding New York Shipbuilding" series, which also contains vessel-specific information. The collection includes several shipyard reports, technical reports, and guidelines, including a 1919 "Information for Employees" booklet. The collection includes several marketing items from Merritt-Chapman & Scott, a marine salvage and construction firm that acquired New York Shipbuilding in 1953. The collection contains a small amount of material on the Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company of Chester, PA, as well as a handful of other publications, including a 1920 report, Delaware River Ship Builders' Council published by American Federation of Labor. Administrative Information Publication Information Independence Seaport Museum, J. Welles Henderson Archives and Library May 2010 Conditions Governing Access note This collection is open for research use. Conditions Governing Use note Copyright restrictions may apply. Please contact the Archives with requests for copying and for authorization to publish, quote or reproduce the material. Custodial History note Gift of Clare Ward, 1998 - Page 6 -
Processing Information note Ward Collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1967 The processing of this collection was made possible through generous funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, administered through the Council on Library and Information Resources Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives Project. This collection is minimally processed to the folder level. Related Materials Related Archival Materials note Independence Seaport Museum: New York Shipbuilding records, 1899-1967 (1967.310) and Independence Seaport Museum collection on the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, 1919-1964; Hagley Museum and Library: Camden County Historical Society, South Jersey Port Corporation. Controlled Access Headings Genre(s) Correspondence Publications Technical manuals Geographic Name(s) Camden (N.J.) Subject(s) Nuclear submarines Shipbuilding - Page 7 -
Shipbuilding industry Ward Collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1967 - Page 8 -
Shipbuilding Contract Material Ward Collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1967 Collection Inventory Shipbuilding Contract Material Contract lists After 1967 1 1 Correspondence 1954-1964 1 2 USS Kitty Hawk launching material 1960 1 3 "Claim of New York Shipbuilding Corporation for equitable adjustment for increases in cost resulting from changes ordered by the Bureau of Ships in connection with construction of the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk" 1961 October - Page 9 -
New York Shipbuilding Publications Ward Collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1967 1 4 "Technical operation and economic report on the N.S. Savannah first year of experimental commercial operation" 1965-1966 1 5 "Delay in vessel delivery, DLG(N)35" 1967 August 11 1 6 Plans of shipyard 1960s, undated 1 7 New York Shipbuilding Publications Shipyard Newsletters "York Ship News," Volume 1 1919-1920 - Page 10 -
Marketing Material 2 1 "York Ship News," Volume 2 1920-1921 2 2 "York Ship News," Volume 3 (incomplete) 1921 2 3 "Shipways," Volume 2 Number 2 1959 2 4 Marketing Material History and development of New York Shipbuilding Corporation, Reprint of American International Corporation Bulletin 1920 June - Page 11 -
Marketing Material 2 5 New York Shipbuilding Corporation: Photographic impressions of the world's largest shipyard 1921 2 6 New York Shipbuilding Corporation: A history and record 1931 2 7 New York Shipbuilding president's address and history, published by Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers 1943 2 8 50 Years: New York Shipbuilding Corporation 1949 2 9 - Page 12 -
Marketing Material Promotional brochure after 1949 2 10 Annual report 1958 2 11 Careers in shipbuilding after 1960 2 12 Steel fabrication circa 1960 2 13 Promotional report regarding off-shore platform drilling tender undated - Page 13 -
Reports and Guidelines 2 14 Reports and Guidelines "Information for employees" booklet 1919 3 1 "Distribution of costs: New York Shipbuilding Corporation" circa 1947 3 2 "Report of organization and yard conditions at New York Shipbuilding Corporation" 1951 February 9 3 3 "Manual of standard time study procedure" 1953 February 12 - Page 14 -
Technical Reports 3 4 "Rules of safety" 1959 3 5 Technical Reports "A modern ten cubic yard dipper dredge," paper presented by Merville Willis 1958 April 18 3 6 "Full scale closure test, Dresden nuclear power station pressure vessel" 1958 August 6 3 7 "Welding and allied processes" 1962-1965 3 8 - Page 15 -
Merritt-Chapman & Scott Publications Ward Collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1967 "Naval nuclear engineering procedures (NNEP) 40-7 and 40-8" 1963 3 9 Merritt-Chapman & Scott Publications Black horse of the sea, by Robert D. MacMillen 1929 3 10 Merritt-Chapman & Scott Corporation: Engineering construction on land and water front, marine salvage and heavy hoisting 1946 4 1 Merritt-Chapman & Scott history and photograph album after 1953 4 2 - Page 16 -
Histories and Clippings Regarding New York Shipbuilding Merritt-Chapman & Scott Corporation annual report 1962 4 3 Merritt-Chapman & Scott Corporation construction and marine services circa 1966 4 4 Histories and Clippings Regarding New York Shipbuilding Clippings 1930-1966 4 5 "Shipbuilding in New Jersey" school bulletin, by Arthur M. Taylor 1938 October 27 4 6 - Page 17 -
US Navy Publications on Policies, Procedures, and Specifications Histories of ships built at New York Shipbuilding, from Navy histories 1950s - 1967 4 7 US Navy Publications on Policies, Procedures, and Specifications US Navy publication regarding naval vessels (461 pages) circa 1939 5 1 "Specifications for welding: Part 1, General" 1940 April 5 2 "Nomenclature of naval vessels" 1942 February 5 3 - Page 18 -
US Navy Publications on Policies, Procedures, and Specifications "Stage building and ship carpentry" (Bulletin 345-R) Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Public Instruction 1943 February 5 4 "Shipyard welding workmanship, recommendations for welders and welding leadermen" (NAVCG 137), prepared by US Coast Guard 1945 June 5 5 "Principles of naval engineering" (NAVPERS 10788) 1958 5 6 Rudiments of nuclear submarines after 1959 5 7 "Training aid booklet - Volume 1, Piping, SS(N)593" (NAVSHIPS TAB - SS(N)593-1) 1960 December - Page 19 -
US Navy Publications on Policies, Procedures, and Specifications 5 8 "Fabrication, welding and inspection of HY-80 submarine hulls" (250-637-3) 1963 5 9 "Fabrication, welding and inspection of ship hulls" (NAVSHIPS 0900-000-1000) 1964 November 1 6 1 "Ultrasonic inspection procedures and acceptance standards: Hull structure production and repair welds" (NAVSHIPS 0900-009-3010) 1966 January 6 2 "Visual inspection of welds on reactor plant components" (NAVSHIPS 250-1500-1) 1966 August 5 6 3 - Page 20 -
Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company Materials Ward Collection of New York Shipbuilding Corporation material, 1919-1967 "Fabrication, welding and inspection of ship hulls" (NAVSHIPS 0900-000-1000) 1967 March 1 6 4 "Navigation and vessel inspection circular" (NVC 7-68) 1968 October 6 5 "Military standard welded joint design" (MIL-STD-0022B (SHIPS)) 1969 May 8 6 6 Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company Materials "Our Yard" newsletters 1964 6 7 - Page 21 -
Other Publications Plan for Contract 529 (Tanker Pawcatuck, launched 1946 February 19) undated 6 8 "A new member of the aerospace team" promotional booklet after 1969 6 9 Other Publications "Delaware River Ship Builders' Council, Report," published by American Federation of Labor 1920 6 10 "US Naval Institute Proceedings," Volume 88 Number 8 1962 6 11 - Page 22 -
Other Publications "American Merchant Marine: Hero in war, stepchild in peace," published by Committee of American Steamship Lines 1966 May 6 12 "Marine Technology," Volume 4 Number 1 1967 January 6 13 - Page 23 -