The American Ship Building Company was the dominant

shipbuilder Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...

on the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...

before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. It started as Cleveland Shipbuilding in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, Ohio in 1888 and opened the yard in Lorain, Ohio in 1898. It changed its name to the American Ship Building Company in 1900, when it acquired Superior Shipbuilding, in Superior, Wisconsin; Toledo Shipbuilding, in

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

; and West Bay Shipbuilding, in West Bay City, Michigan. With the coming of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the company also acquired Buffalo Dry Dock, in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

; Chicago Shipbuilding, in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

; and Detroit Shipbuilding, in

Wyandotte, Michigan Wyandotte ( ) is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 25,058 at the 2020 census. Wyandotte is located in southeastern Michigan, approximately south of Detroit on the Detroit River, and it is part of the coll ...

. American Shipbuilding ranked 81st among United States corporations in the value of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

military production contracts.

The Lorain Yard

The Lorain, Ohio Yard served as the main facility of the company after World War II and to this day five of the 13 separate ore carriers on the Great Lakes were built in Lorain, including the M/V ''Paul R. Tregurtha'' which is the largest vessel on the Great Lakes (1,013'06" long). Built in 1898, the Lorain Yard quickly grew in size and importance. The facilities eventually included two dry docks over long built to handle the largest of the Great Lakes ore carriers. The Lorain Yard closed in 1984 after a series of labor disputes. Most of the buildings associated with shipyard were demolished with only the water tower and Ship Building Pattern Warehouse remaining. The pattern warehouse is now The Shipyards dining and events venue. The remaining lands are now being redeveloped as an upscale housing development.

Ships built by the company

* , launched in 1892 in

, Ohio * , launched in 1892 as a lake freighter, originally as the SS ''Samuel Mather'' * , launched in 1896 in Cleveland * , launched in 1897 in Cleveland * , launched in 1902, in Cleveland originally as the ''Manistique-Marquette & Northern No. 1'' * , built in 1909 in Lorain, Ohio, sunk in the

Great Lakes Storm of 1913 The Great Lakes Storm of 1913 (historically referred to as the "Big Blow", the "Freshwater Fury", and the "White Hurricane") was a blizzard with hurricane-force winds that devastated the Great Lakes Basin in the Midwestern United States and ...

* , launched in 1910 in Lorain, Ohio, sunk in the

* , built in 1906 for the Acme Transit Company, later sunk in the

* , built in 1903 in Cleveland * SS ''Milwaukee Clipper'', built in 1904 in Cleveland, originally as the ''Juniata'', for the Anchor Line * , originally built in 1913 as the ''Seeandbee'' in Lorain * , originally built in 1924 as the ''Greater Buffalo'' in Lorain * , launched in 1927 in Lorain, later Outarde, broken up at Port Colborne 1985 * , launched in 1943 in Lorain * , built in 1952 in Lorain * , built in 1927 in Lorain * , launched in 1942 in Lorain * , launched in 1943 in Lorain * , launched in 1943 in Lorain * , launched in 1943 in Cleveland * , launched in 1943 in Cleveland * , launched in 1944 in Lorain * , launched in 1944 in Lorain * , launched in 1943, Cleveland * , launched in 1943, Cleveland * , launched in 1943, Buffalo * , launched in 1967 in Lorain * , launched in 1967 in Lorain * , launched in 1967 in Lorain * , launched in 1967 in Lorain * , launched in 1968 in Lorain * , launched in 1968 in Lorain * , launched in 1968 in Lorain * , launched in 1972 in Lorain. * , launched in 1985, Tampa Shipyards (subsidiary of The American Ship Building Company)

Delta Shipbuilding

During the Second World War, the company managed Delta Shipbuilding Company for the

United States Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 195 ...

. Delta had a yard at

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

and built a total of 188 ships. Delta Shipbuilding Company built 187

Liberty ship Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Ma ...

s, the first completed was SS William C.C. Claiborne, named after the first governor of Louisiana, William C. C. Claiborne. The

had Delta and eight other emergency shipyards start building Liberty ships in 1941, 2,710 were produced during the war. Many were built in less than two months. The Delta shipyard was started specifically for the war effort, at a site on the

Industrial Canal The Industrial Canal is a 5.5 mile (9 km) waterway in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. The waterway's proper name, as used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and on NOAA nautical charts, is Inner Harbor Navigation Canal ( IHNC). ...

near the Almonaster Avenue Bridge, immediately south of the present-day I-10 high-rise bridge. The yard was shut down after the end of World War II. Sample of ships built: * SS ''Martin Behrman'' * SS ''Josiah Parker'' * SS ''Timothy Bloodworth'' * USS ''Hesperia'' (AKS-13) * SS ''Charles Henderson'' * SS ''Benjamin Contee'' * USS ''Panda'' (IX-125) * USS ''Gratia'' (AKS-11) * USS ''Cybele'' (AKS-10) * USS ''Kochab'' (AKS-6) * USS ''Porcupine'' (IX-126) * USS ''Basilan'' * SS ''James Eagan Layne'' * USS ''Burias'' (AG-69) * USS ''Wildcat'' (AW-2) * USS ''Stag'' (AW-1) * USS ''Hecuba'' (AKS-12)

Toledo Shipbuilding Company

The Toledo Shipbuilding Company, which became an operating unit of the American Shipbuilding Company by consolidation in 1945, was itself the builder of several of the most well-known coal-fired steamships of the Great Lakes, such as the (built in 1911).

Steinbrenners

In the early 1960s, the American Shipbuilding Company acquired Kinsman Marine Transit Company, which was owned by the Steinbrenner family. As a result of the transaction, the Steinbrenner family acquired a controlling interest in American Shipbuilding. Frustrated after years of fighting with unions over cost-saving work changes, the Steinbrenners closed the Lorain shipyard in December 1983 and moved all operations to Tampa, Florida. The principal member of the Steinbrenner family who was involved in the operation of the transit company at this time was

George Steinbrenner George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving own ...

, who became better known later as the principal owner of the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

. The company began having difficulties in the 1980s, going through a bankruptcy in 1993. The company was sold in 1995.

References

External links

AmShip Lorain, Lorain OH
{{Authority control Defunct shipbuilding companies of the United States Manufacturing companies based in Cleveland Defunct manufacturing companies based in Ohio Manufacturing companies established in 1888