Tyne Iron Shipbuilding Co

Tyne Iron Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.

H.A.B. Cole and R.F. Cole, two brothers took over the Willington Quay shipyard of William B. Hornsby in 1871. Hornsby had taken it over from the Marshall Brothers who in turn had taken it over from Thomas Anderson who had established the yard in 1852. The Cole Brothers built six iron screw steamers up to 1876. The yard was managed by William J. Bone.

Shipbuilding

• 1876 – The Tyne Iron Shipbuilding Co. Ltd was set up by William J Bone.The main types of ships built were tramps, colliers and some tankers. The yard grew from an initial four acres to include all of the land east of the Clelands yard. It was one of the leading Tyneside yards. The yard built nine tankers for Hunting & Son of Newcastle

• 1901 – J. Bourne formerly of Armstrong Mitchell & Co took over from Bone as manager with G.F. Mulherion as General Manager. They remained in charge until the yard’s closure. Output during WW1 was 10 tramps, three naval patrol boats and two naval tankers.

• 1923 – two tankers were completed for Hunting & Son of Newcastle with Wellfield 5633/23 being the biggest ship ever built at the yard.

• 1926 – The yard never recovered from the slump of the 1920s with no ships completed at all in 1926.

• 1927 – The yard closed in January. It had completed just over 200 ships.

• 1928 – The yard was sold to Armstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd to complete a few more tramps.

• 1933 – The yard was finally closed.

• 1935 – The yard was sold to National Shipbuilders Security Ltd and dismantled in the same year.

Source of Information

• British Shipbuilding Yards. 3 vols by Norman L. Middlemiss