The Kaiser Company (Vancouver, Washington), commonly known as the Vancouver Shipyard, was an emergency shipyard constructed along the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

Vancouver, Washington Vancouver ( ) is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, located in Clark County, Washington, Clark County. Founded in 1825 and incorporated in 1857, Vancouver had a population of 190, ...

, to help meet the production demands of the U.S. Maritime Commission in World War II. The shipyard was one of three

Kaiser Shipyards The Kaiser Shipyards were seven major shipbuilding yards located on the West Coast of the United States, United States west coast during World War II. Kaiser ranked 20th among U.S. corporations in the value of wartime production contracts. The ...

in the Pacific Northwest, along with the

Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation was a World War II emergency shipyard located along the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States. The shipyard built nearly 600 Liberty ship, Liberty and Victory ships between 1941 and 1945 under the E ...

and the Swan Island Shipyard across the Columbia in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. The Vancouver yard began production in early 1942 and totaled nearly . It produced vessels of five different types, with ''Casablanca''-class escort carriers being its biggest production line. With an initial payroll of 38,000 workers, the nearby city of

Vanport, Oregon Vanport, sometimes referred to as Vanport City or Kaiserville, was a city of wartime public housing in Multnomah County, Oregon, United States, between the contemporary Portland city boundary and the Columbia River. It was destroyed in the 1948 ...

was constructed to house the workforce that was introduced to the area. The Shipyards were eventually sold to Gilmore Steel for $3.25 million.

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* {{Authority control 1942 establishments in Washington (state) 1940s disestablishments in Washington (state) * Economy of Vancouver, Washington Maritime history of Washington (state) Shipbuilding in Washington (state) Henry J. Kaiser United States home front during World War II Shipyards of the United States