Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-05-02
llI6 WORK
ON SHIPS IN AUGUST
3rst of wooden Fleet" Will
Probably Be Launched
at Newark
90 VESSELS PLANNED
Total of 100000 Tons to Be Built on
Government and Private
lF Orders
NEW YORK. Nav


The first Of the wooden fleet ito bridge
NE Atlantic" will probably be launched
On the Passaic River at Newark, ~ j.,
about August /.
& 1t will be followed by others at dozens
! Of yards in different sections of the coun-
\ try. until the Government program Of 1000
wooden vessels OF about 5000 tons each is
Y eompleted. 1t is Likely this program will
Dc steadily expanded also IL the war con-
tinues to rage.
In addition to the 100000 tons Of the
3overnment carrying feet. more than
100000 tons of steel wooden merchant
vessels are being built or have been con-
tracted for to he built in American ship
yards.
should the present movement continue.
the United States will soon be the leading
shipbuilding nation of the world; indeed,
II will surpass all previous records by any
nation.
Including vessels built for American own
ers. foreign owners. undisclosed owners and
builders account, adapted for deep-sea SER
vice. II Is estimated that there are 6ii
In course of construction or contracted for,
with an estimated tonnage of 2,394131.
These figures are exclusive Of ships under
construction for the Navy Department. oil
and molasses tankers. vessels constructed
for use on the Great Lakes and those under
500 tons.
OF this amount of tonnage more than
100000 tons already have been launched,
about 10000 tons are scheduled to be
launched this spring, about 177,000 tons
to be launched during the summer, about
100000 tons launched this fall, more than
100000 tons launched this winter and more
than 100000 tons launched and completed
In 1918.
or the vessels built for service on the
Great Lakes. approximately 10000 tons. a
number of these could in an emergency be
used FOR deep sea commerce.
One OF the largest of the new plants will |
be built for the Baltimore Drydocks and
Shpbuildng Company. The plans call for |
che construction of one of the largest ship |
building and repair plants on the Atlantic |
coast. The company has an option on a |
site at Baltimore. The new plant will cost |
more than $4,000 900, and will furnish en- |
ployment to 1000 additional men.
On April l of this year there were IN
the United States 152 shipyards marine |
engine and boiler shops and 23s repair |
plants. including drydocks and marine rail-
ways
Some idea of what the shipbuilding ca
pacity of Great Britain is may be CLEANED |
from the fact that at the beginning of the
war, exclusive of the plants in her colonies,
she had 453 shipyards. marine engine ana
boiler shops. while her repair plants in
cluded 572 drydocks and marine railways.
Since the first of the year orders for
new SHIPS nave SWdfnpeu tne Inc
Bethlehem Steel Company in its various
subsidiary yards Is building more than 17S
vessels.
In the of. the Hanlon Drydock and
Shipbuilding Company, of Oakland, Cal, on
January its employees numbered $50. It
has SO many contracts for vessels now that
II is enlarging its plant to such an extent
that by June it will have $500 men at
work.
On April 13 thirty-fve shipbuilders called
1T the Offices of the Federal Shipping Board
at Washington and signed contracts for a
large number of the 900 wooden vessels
of 5000 tons each which the United States
Government, under the direction of Major
General George w. Goethals, will have con-
otructed.