ONE THOUSAND SHIPS

Taranaki Daily News, 16 October 1930, Page 11

ONE THOUSAND SHIPS

BUILDERS’ GREAT RECORD. CAREER OF~EIGHTY* YEARS.

Paliners Shipbuilding,-and Iron Company, .Limited, of Jarrow and- Hebburn;; reached:-an . interesting. milestone in ite history when-, it launched its one-' thousandth ship recently, says the Shipping World. The Jarrow,’shipyard,- which has a • world-wide reputation \in' shipbuilding,was commenced in 1851 by the , late Sir Charles Mark Palmer and hisbrother, Mr. George Palmer. The John Bowes,'- built 5 78, yeirs ago by this 'firm,, and actually the first iron-screw collier,, is still in active service under (the Spanish flag. No fewer than four other Vessels constructed at Jarrow over 60 years ago are, moreover,j.ktill trading. Palmers Company has many, distinctions, in shipbuilding, but the John Bowes is outstanding, for this vessel, which was designed by Sir: Charles Mark, Palmer to. compete with the railways in carrying coal, to London, wa? really: the progenitor of the modern cargo vessel. It waslargely responsible, indeed, for the great development of iron' shipbuilding bn the;.,North East- Coast, which .has long been Recognised as one of the principal 'shipbuilding centres in the world. : ; The John’ Bowes, puilt in 1552, 'was not the .first, iron vessel constructed in the Jarrow yard, this honour being held by -.a tug-boat named Northumberland, but the John Bowes, with its singlescrew engines, which were made by Messrs Robert Stephenson and Company, has 1 he’credit of inaugurating a flew - era in shipbuilding. ’ ? ? Few ; firms in the country possess, such a record for naval work as Messrs Palmers. The first war. vessel built, was H.M.S. Terror, described' as a floating battery, which was constructed in, 1556 in the short, period of three montns. For the first time rolled armour plates were used on this , vessel. Palmers have built 107 war vessels of all classes, amorig'.wffiiclr may be mentioned-the bat-tle-xjruiser' Queen Mary, which was lost at the Battle of Jutland; the., battleships Hercules and. Resolution, and the cruisers Dauntless • and: York; also ,50 destroyers? :■ During the -Great- War, besides ' new work,' 200 warships and 147 merchantmen were here docked and repaired;- and in the steelworks 200,000 tons of steel . were produced! for the -making of shells. . Palmers shi; yards and works now cover an area.of about 140 acres,-with a river frontage of about a piile. Palmers have also taken a leading part in tanker design and ' construction, and the .British . Inventor, the first bracketless ship,, was-built by them, w’hile some months ago they delivered the Tuscan Star, the largest refrigerated ship in the world.

During the 79 years Palmers have been established, no less than 2,32'5,>271 tons gross of shipping has been launched by them. The average gross . tonnage of th© first '5OO vessels - was 1175, the average of the vessels from 501 tij '5O W’as 2576 tons, and the average of the last 250 vessels was 4360 tons.