# Skinner & Eddy

The Skinner & Eddy Corporation, commonly known as Skinner & Eddy, was a Seattle, Washington-based shipbuilding corporation that existed from 1916 to 1923. The yard is notable for completing more ships for the United States war effort during World War I than any other American shipyard, and also for breaking world production speed records for individual ship construction.
In total, the company built 75 ships—72 cargo ships and three oil tankers—from 1916 to 1920, including 32 completed for the Emergency Fleet Corporation during the war. The yard was closed in 1921 as a result of the severe postwar shipbuilding slump. Skinner & Eddy later became a shipping line operator, and appears to have been wound up in the early 1970s.

## Background

The Skinner & Eddy Corporation was founded in January 1916 by two entrepreneurs, David E. "D.E." Skinner and John W. Eddy, owners of the Port Blakely Mill Company since 1903. Shortly after its establishment on the downtown Seattle waterfront47°35′25″N 122°20′22″W﻿ / ﻿47.5902°N 122.33941°W﻿ / 47.5902; -122.33941, Skinner & Eddy Corp. began leasing the shipyard of the Seattle Construction and Drydock Company (at the time a subsidiary of Todd Shipbuilding), located a few steps north between Connecticut and Dearborn Street. Seattle Construction & Dry Dock was itself a successor to the Moran Brothers shipyard, which around the start of the 20th century had been one of America's largest shipyards, responsible for building Seattle's first battleship, USS Nebraska, in 1906.
On April 6, 1917, 15 months after Skinner and Eddy Corp. began leasing the yard, the United States entered World War I. Skinner & Eddy responded to the news by purchasing an additional 15 acres (61,000 m$^2$) of Seattle waterfront property from the Seattle Dock Company and the Centennial Flouring Mill for $1,500,000 and $600,000 respectively, which they used to begin building a second shipyard, which became known as Plant No. 2 and lay just south of plant No. 1. After securing lucrative contracts from the Emergency Fleet Corporation for the construction of merchant ships for the war effort, Skinner & Eddy was also able in June 1918 to make an outright purchase of the yard of Seattle Construction and Dry Dock, which was named Plant No. 1.

## Facilities

When completed, Skinner & Eddy's facilities included ten building slipways—five at each Plant—and four outfitting docks. A five-section, 459-foot (140 m) drydock capable of servicing vessels of up to 15,000 tons was also acquired, along with a 50-ton floating crane.
Most of the ships built by the company during the war were constructed at Plant No. 1, as Plant No. 2 was still under construction for much of this period. With its two plants, which together covered about 57 acres (230,000 m$^2$) of waterfront property, Skinner & Eddy was Seattle's largest shipbuilding company, at its wartime peak employing about 13,500 people.

## World War I

The first seven ships built by Skinner & Eddy were for private contractors. The company completed its first ship, Niels Nielson, on November 9, 1916, and had completed a further two by the time the United States entered the war in April 1917. These three ships along with four partially completed vessels were then requisitioned for war service by the newly created United States Shipping Board (USSB). Thereafter, Skinner & Eddy was to build ships exclusively for the USSB, through the latter's agency, the Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFT).
Skinner & Eddy soon began to distinguish itself by its production speed. Prior to its operations, a cargo ship built and delivered in the United States in under 250 days was considered fast, but as early as June 1917, the company under the capable direction of its general manager, David Rodgers, completed a freighter, Stolt Nielson, in under 150 days. In November 1917, the company established a world keel-to-launch production speed record of under 70 days, maintaining and improving on the record over the following five months. In early 1918, another U.S. company briefly established a new world keel-to-launch record of 61 days, but Skinner & Eddy recaptured the record in April with the 55-day launch of West Lianga, a ship that was also completed in the record time of 80 days.
Thereafter, all the company's ships built during the war were each completed in well under 100 days, with a best performance by war's end of 79 days from keel laying to delivery. Good management alone was probably not entirely responsible for the company's outstanding performance however; Skinner & Eddy also paid its employees highly competitive wages, which enabled the company to attract the best and most skilled workers.
The company's improved performance over time is also reflected in its total production figures. In 1917, the company produced a total tonnage of 72,800 tons; the following year it raised production more than threefold, to 232,400 tons. In all, Skinner & Eddy delivered 32 ships to the EFT, including 29 freighters and three tankers, over the course of the war—more than that of any other shipyard in the country.

## Postwar history

Since it was a widely held belief in the United States that a shipbuilding boom would follow the end of hostilities, the USSB declined to cancel many of its wartime shipbuilding contracts at the end of the war. In Skinner & Eddy's case, this meant that the company was to complete a further 43 ships for the USSB in the postwar period. In 1920 however, the USSB cancelled a contract for an additional 25 ships, prompting the company to launch a $17 million claim against the government for lost anticipated profits, later reduced to a $9 million claim.
Skinner & Eddy delivered its last ship in February 1920, but failed to secure any further shipbuilding contracts after this date because of the severe postwar shipbuilding slump. In 1923, the Skinner & Eddy shipyard was permanently closed, and the company's proprietors, D.E. Skinner and John Eddy, dissolved their longstanding business partnership. John Eddy returned to the lumber business, and Skinner became sole proprietor of the Skinner & Eddy Corporation, which retained its original name.
Skinner & Eddy now entered the shipping line business with the purchase of the Pacific Steamship Company, which operated from the company's former Plant No. 2. The company also invested heavily in Alaskan salmon canneries. In 1944, Skinner & Eddy bought the Alaska Steamship Company, and in the postwar period also operated a cruise line. D.E. Skinner's grandson, David E. "Ned" Skinner II, discontinued the business in 1971, moving the family assets into real estate. His Skinner Corporation would eventually become one of America's largest private companies.

## The ships

Skinner & Eddy produced a total of 75 ships from 1916 to 1920 (the yard no. sequence ends at 76 as the number 13 was skipped). Most of the ships were freighters, but three 10,000-ton tankers were amongst the seven ships built for private contractors prior to the U.S. entry into World War I.
The company built three different types of standard freighters for the USSB, all of them of Skinner & Eddy's own design. The USSB designated these types as Design 1013, Design 1079 and Design 1105 respectively.
The Design 1013 ships were 8,800 tons deadweight, with a length of 423 feet 9 inches (410 ft between perpendiculars), beam of 54 feet (16 m) and hold depth of 29 feet 9 inches (9.07 m) Some examples of this type of ship were turbine powered and others were fitted with triple expansion engines. Some were also completed as oil fired and others as coal fired vessels. Skinner & Eddy built a total of 24 ships of this type. Most of the ships completed by the company during the war were of this type.
The Design 1079 was of 9,600 tons deadweight, turbine-powered and oil fired, with dimensions of 409.6 x 54.2 x 27.1 feet (8.3 m). Skinner & Eddy was the only company which built this type. A total of 23 were completed. The Design 1105 was also 9,600 tons deadweight, oil-fired and with triple expansion engines. Dimensions were 401.5 x 54.8 x 32.1 feet (9.8 m). Again, Skinner & Eddy was the only company which produced this type. A total of 14 were built.
Additionally, eleven 8,800 deadweight-ton freighters, similar if not identical to the Design 1013s were built prior to the manufacture of the USSB types listed above. All types had a typical service speed of between 11 and 12 knots (22 km/h).

### In service

Of the first 39 ships built by Skinner & Eddy during and shortly after World War I, 23 were immediately commissioned on completion into the U.S. Navy, and served briefly as supply ships before decommissioning in 1919. A further three were assigned Navy ID's but never commissioned.
In 1921, three Skinner & Eddy ships (including one of those previously assigned a Navy ID) were converted into destroyer tenders and commissioned into the U.S. Navy as USS Altair (AD-11), USS Denebola (AD-12) and USS Rigel (AD-13) respectively. All three of these vessels would remain in Navy service through the end of World War II.
Only one Skinner & Eddy ship was lost (to enemy action) in World War I. In the interwar period, most of the company's vessels were engaged in commercial service. Three, Western Front, Elkton and Nile were lost to maritime accidents in the 1920s, and seven more were scrapped in the 1930s, probably because of the oversupply of shipping.
World War II took a heavy toll of Allied merchant vessels, and of the 64 Skinner & Eddy ships that saw service in the war, 31, or almost 50%, were lost to enemy action, most of them to U-boats. Another two were deliberately sunk as breakwaters during the Normandy Campaign. The 31 that survived the war were mostly scrapped in the late 1940s and 1950s, and only four were still in existence by 1960. The last Skinner & Eddy vessel to see service was probably Edray, transferred to the Soviet Union under lend-lease during World War II and scrapped in 1967.

## Fate of the shipyards

Following the closure of the Skinner & Eddy shipyards in 1923, the company's Plant No. 2 was sold in 1924 to the Pacific Steamship Company, which built a new office and terminus on the site. The site also became the terminus of the Admiral Line, which did considerable trade with Siberia and the Orient.
With the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, the site became a Hooverville for Seattle's unemployed. During World War II, the Hooverville was razed to make way for a huge supply depot run by the Army Quartermaster Corps, and after the war it became a base for the U.S. Coast Guard. As of 2003, the site was the location for several large container shipping terminals. Skinner & Eddy's Plant No. 1, meanwhile, has become part of Seattle's SoDo district.

## Production history

The following table represents a complete list of all ships built by the Skinner & Eddy Corporation. Ships marked with an asterisk are those assigned ID numbers by the Navy but never commissioned.
Fields marked with a hyphen indicate that the given field is not applicable to this particular ship. Gross tonnage values (GRT) use the nominal GRT for the ship type (identifiable by a "00" in the last two digits) where a more precise GRT is not available for the individual ship. Consult the table legend for additional information about the table.
Ships built by the Skinner & Eddy Corporation, 1916-1920 :
| Name/Image | Yard# | USSB# | Type | Design# | GRT | Deliv. | Fate |
| Niels NielsenYoshu Maru $^{26}$ | 1 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5711 | 09/11/16 | Bombed, 1945 |
| Hanna NielsonTaian Maru $^{26}$ | 2 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5655 | 22/12/16 | Torpedoed 1943 |
| S. V. HarknessSvithiod $^{26}$ | 3 | —— | Tanker | —— | 6400 | 08/05/17 | Scrapped 48 |
| Josiah Macy | 4 | —— | Tanker | —— | 6400 | 09/06/17 | Scrapped 1950 |
| Stolt Nielson | 5 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5600 | 26/06/17 | Torpedoed 1918 |
| J. M. Fox $^y$USS Jeannette Skinner (ID-1321) | 6 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5800 | 20/08/17 | Scrapped 1943 |
| Luise NielsenTaigen Maru $^{26}$ | 7 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5660 | 10/03/17 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| Lt. de Missiessy | 8 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5600 | 19/09/17 | Scrapped 1933 |
| Martha Washington $^y$Nikkosan Maru $^y$USS Indiana (ID-1787) $^{18}$USS Western Front (ID-1787) $^{18}$Western Front $^{18}$ | 9 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5600 | 20/10/17 | Destroyed by fire and explosion at sea, 1921 |
| War Flame $^y$USS West Haven (ID-2159)Marian Otis Chandler $^{29}$Onomea $^{38}$Empire Leopard $^{40}$ | 10 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5520 | 24/12/17 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| Trontolite | 11 | —— | Tanker | —— | 7115 | 02/02/18 | Scrapped 1946 |
| Jas G. Eddy $^y$West Arrow* $^{18}$Black Osprey $^{35}$ | 12 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5589 | 26/02/18 | Torpedoed 1941 |
| Western Hero | 14 | 83 | Freighter | 1013 | 5611 | 05/01/18 | Scrapped 1946 |
| USS Absaroka (ID-2518)Primavista $^{46}$Panenterprise $^{48}$Maryland $^{52}$ | 15 | 84 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 12/02/18 | Scrapped 1954 |
| David RogersWestlakePort Texaco No. 1 $^{32}$ | 16 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5600 | 09/03/18 | Scrapped 1951 |
| Elizabeth Gibbs $^y$Western QueenVirginia $^{46}$Virginia II $^{48}$ | 17 | —— | Freighter | —— | 5600 | 25/04/18 | Scrapped 1954 |
| Canoga | 18 | 85 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 23/03/18 | Scrapped 1933 |
| Ossineke | 19 | 86 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 13/04/18 | Scrapped 1931 |
| West Durfee | 20 | 1175 | Freighter | 1013 | 5522 | 16/05/18 | Scrapped 1946 |
| USS West Lianga (ID-2758)Helen Whittier $^{29}$Kalani $^{38}$Empire Cheetah $^{40}$Hobbema $^{42}$ | 21 | 1176 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 04/05/18 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| USS West Alsek (ID-3119) | 22 | 87 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 04/06/18 | Scrapped 1933 |
| USS West Apaum (ID-3221) | 23 | 88 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 19/06/18 | Scrapped 1933 |
| USS West Cohas (ID-3253)Empire Simba $^{40}$ | 24 | 1177 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 29/06/18 | Scuttled 1945 |
| USS West Ekonk (ID-3313)Empire Wildebeeste $^{41}$ | 25 | 1178 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 13/07/18 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| USS West Gambo (ID-3220)Empire Hartebeeste $^{41}$ | 26 | 1179 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 20/07/18 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| West GotomskaAndelien $^{43}$ | 27 | 1180 | Freighter | 1013 | 5728 | 07/08/18 | Scrapped 1948 |
| USS West Hobomac (ID-3335)Ile de Batz $^{40}$ | 28 | 1181 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 17/08/18 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| USS West Hosokie (ID-3695)West HosokieConstance Chandler $^{29}$Liloa $^{38}$Belorussia $^{45}$ | 29 | 1182 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 29/08/18 | Scrapped 1960 |
| USS West Humhaw (ID-3718)West Humhaw $^{19}$ | 30 | 1183 | Freighter | 1013 | 5527 | 14/09/18 | Torpedoed 1944 |
| USS West Lashaway (ID-3700)West Lashaway $^{19}$ | 31 | 1184 | Freighter | 1013 | 5637 | 30/09/18 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| USS West Loquassuck (ID-3638)West Loquassuck $^{19}$ | 32 | 1185 | Freighter | 1013 | 5644 | 15/10/18 | Scrapped 1936 |
| USS West Madaket (ID-3636)West Madaket $^{19}$ | 33 | 1186 | Freighter | 1013 | 5565 | 30/10/18 | Torpedoed 1943 |
| USS West Mahomet (ID-3681)West Mahomet $^{19}$ | 34 | 1187 | Freighter | 1013 | 5600 | 13/11/18 | Scrapped 1938 |
| West Maximus* | 35 | 1188 | Freighter | 1013 | 5561 | —/04/19 | Torpedoed 1943 |
| USS West Cressy (ID-3813)West Cressey $^{19}$Briansk $^{43}$Tallin $^{45}$ | 36 | 1925 | Freighter | 1013 | 5596 | —/12/18 | Wrecked 1946 |
| USS West Elcajon (ID-3907)West Elcajon $^{19}$Golden Kauri $^{28}$Waipio $^{39}$Paralos II $^{46}$ | 37 | 1926 | Freighter | 1013 | 5548 | —/01/19 | Scrapped 1954 |
| USS West Elcasco (ID-3661)USAT Henry Gibbins $^{41}$ | 38 | 1927 | Freighter | 1013 | 5766 | 23/10/18 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| USS West Eldara (ID-3704)West Eldara $^{19}$Mae $^{36}$ | 39 | 1928 | Freighter | 1013 | 5607 | —/11/18 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| USS Edenton (ID-3696)Edenton$^{19}$USAT Irvin L. Hunt $^{41}$Edenton $^{46}$ | 40 | 1731 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | 05/12/18 | Scrapped 1948 |
| EdgecombeUSS Rigel (AD-13) $^{21}$ | 41 | 1732 | FreighterDestroyer Tender | 1079 | 6800 | 24/12/18 | Scrapped 1950 |
| EdgefieldEmpire Ibex $^{41}$ | 42 | 1733 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | 31/12/18 | Collision 1943 |
| Eldena | 43 | 1929 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | —/05/19 | Torpedoed 1943 |
| EldoraPolybius | 44 | 1930 | Freighter | 1079 | 7041 | —/05/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| EdgehillOremar $^{39}$Mangore $^{48}$ | 45 | 1734 | Freighter | 1079 | 6854 | 02/04/19 | Scrapped 1950 |
| EdgemontAmerican Sailor $^{40}$ | 46 | 1735 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | 22/04/19 | Scrapped 1953 |
| EldridgeTacoma $^{28}$Ewa $^{37}$Nogin $^{43}$ | 47 | 1931 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | —/06/19 | Scrapped 1957 |
| EdgemoorAmerican Seaman $^{39}$ | 48 | 1736 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | 08/05/19 | Scrapped 1952 |
| EdgewoodUSS Denebola (AD-12) $^{21}$Edgewood | 49 | 1737 | FreighterDestroyer tender | 1079 | 6800 | —/05/19 | Scrapped 1950 |
| ElmsportKenmar $^{39}$ | 50 | 1932 | Freighter | 1079 | 6844 | —/07/19 | Wrecked, 1945 |
| EdistoUSS Altair (AD-11) $^{21}$Edisto $^{46}$ | 51 | 1738 | FreighterDestroyer tender | 1079 | 6800 | —/06/19 | Scrapped 1947 |
| ElkaderColorado SpringsMarymar $^{39}$ | 52 | 1933 | Freighter | 1079 | 6847 | —/07/19 | Scrapped 1947 |
| EdmoreGrays Harbor $^{28}$Honomu $^{37}$ | 53 | 1739 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | —/07/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| Wheatland MontanaSeattle $^{28}$Lihue $^{37}$ | 54 | 1934 | Freighter | 1079 | 6800 | —/08/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| EdrayCity of SpokaneOlympia $^{28}$Hamakua $^{37}$Kuibyshev $^{45}$ | 55 | 1740 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/07/19 | Scrapped 1967 |
| StanleyEmpire Pelican $^{41}$ | 56 | 1935 | Freighter | 1105 | 6463 | —/08/19 | Torpedoed 1941 |
| EelbeckEmpire Bunting $^{41}$ | 57 | 1741 | Freighter | 1105 | 6318 | —/08/19 | Sunk as breakwater, 1944 |
| ElkridgeGolden Star $^{28}$Tennessean $^{37}$Empire Penguin $^{40}$Van de Velde $^{42}$Rijnland $^{47}$Vaptistis $^{57}$ | 58 | 1936 | Freighter | 1105 | 6379 | —/08/19 | Scrapped 1959 |
| ElkhornPort Texaco No. 4 $^{36}$ | 59 | 1937 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/09/19 | Scrapped 1951 |
| EditorEmpire Dunlin $^{41}$Norlom $^{42}$ | 60 | 1938 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/09/19 | Bombed, 1943 |
| EndicottEmpire Mermaid $^{40}$ | 61 | 1939 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/09/19 | Torpedoed 1941 |
| Elkton | 62 | 1940 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/09/19 | Mss 27 |
| Brave CoeurEmpire Gull $^{41}$ | 63 | 1941 | Freighter | 1105 | 6458 | —/10/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| Cripple Creek | 64 | 1942 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/10/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| CrisfieldGolden Horn $^{28}$Kaimoku $^{38}$ | 65 | 1943 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/10/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| Effna | 66 | 1743 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/11/19 | Torpedoed 1941 |
| Effingham | 67 | 1742 | Freighter | 1105 | 6400 | —/11/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| EglantineEmpire Buffalo $^{40}$ | 68 | 1744 | Freighter | 1105 | 6325 | —/11/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| EgremontCalobre $^{41}$Borodino $^{45}$ | 69 | 1745 | Freighter | 1079 | 7000 | —/11/19 | Scrapped 1963 |
| Nile | 70 | 1944 | Freighter | 1079 | 7000 | —/12/19 | Wrecked 1927 |
| JaddenJ. B. White $^{41}$ | 71 | 1945 | Freighter | 1079 | 7000 | —/12/19 | Torpedoed 1941 |
| CrosskeysGolden Peak $^{28}$Utahan $^{37}$Futura $^{51}$ | 72 | 1946 | Freighter | 1079 | 7031 | —/12/19 | Scrapped 1960 |
| Crown PointRobin Hood | 73 | 1947 | Freighter | 1079 | 6887 | —/12/19 | Torpedoed 1942 |
| CrowswindRobin AdairBonaventure $^{46}$ | 74 | 1948 | Freighter | 1079 | 6895 | —/01/20 | Scrapped 1952 |
| CroydonRobin Gray | 75 | 1949 | Freighter | 1079 | 6896 | —/01/20 | Sunk as breakwater, 1944 |
| Crystal SpringRobin Goodfellow | 76 | 1950 | Freighter | 1079 | 6885 | —/02/20 | Torpedoed 1944 |
LEGEND: Yard No. = yard number; USSB No. = USSB number; Name = name of ship. Two digit field (in superscript) following names in this colum indicates last two digits of year in which ship was renamed. Names followed by a "y" (in superscript) indicate a yard name that was not subsequently used during the ship's service history. Type = type of ship, either freighter or tanker. Design No. = USSB Design number. Ships with no listed number were built prior to the introduction of the system. GRT = gross register tons. Ships for which an exact tonnage is not available are listed here with the nominal GRT of the type, usually recognizable by the last two digits being zero. Deliv. = date of ship's delivery to customer. For some ships the exact date is not known. Fate = fate of ship.
Sources for this table: Pacific Ports Annual pp. 63–64, 402-405; Jordan; shipbuildinghistory.com; and various individual DANFS ship entries.