Bethlehem Shipbuilding San Pedro was a major

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befo ...

company on

Terminal Island Terminal Island, historically known as Isla Raza de Buena Gente, is a largely artificial island located in Los Angeles County, California, between the neighborhoods of Wilmington and San Pedro in the city of Los Angeles, and the city of Long Be ...

San Pedro, California San Pedro ( ; Spanish: "St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wit ...

owned by

Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation Bethlehem Steel Corporation Shipbuilding Division was created in 1905 when the Bethlehem Steel Corporation of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, acquired the San Francisco shipyard Union Iron Works. In 1917 it was incorporated as Bethlehem Shipbuilding Co ...

. To support the

World War 2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

demand for ships Bethlehem Shipbuilding San Pedro built: US Navy

Destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in 1 ...

s and after the war

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...

s. The yard became involved in World War II production in the early shipbuilding expansions initiated by the

Two-Ocean Navy Act The Two-Ocean Navy Act, also known as the Vinson-Walsh Act, was a United States law enacted on July 19, 1940, and named for Carl Vinson and David I. Walsh, who chaired the Naval Affairs Committee in the House and Senate respectively. The largest n ...

of July 1940. At its peak during the war about 6,000 worked at the yard, Bethlehem Shipbuilding San Pedro shipyard was opened in 1918 as Southwestern Shipbuilding by Western Pipe & Steel. Western Pipe & Steel sold the shipyard to

in 1925. Shipbuilding ended after World War 2 in 1946. In 1983 the shipyard was sold to Southwest Marine. In 1997 Southwest Marine operated four shipyards, which they sold to

The Carlyle Group The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...

. Carlyle Group renamed the shipyard US Marine Repair. In 2002 US Marine Repair sold all six of its yards to

United Defense Industries United Defense Industries (UDI) was an American defense contractor which became part of BAE Systems Land & Armaments after being acquired by BAE Systems in 2005. The company produced combat vehicles, artillery, naval guns, missile launchers and ...

. In 2005 it was sold to

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues ...

but the yard was not used and the yard is now part of the

Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "America's Port", t ...

. The shipyard was located at 1047 South Seaside Ave, San Pedro.

World War II

Bethlehem Shipbuilding San Pedro destroyers built from 1942 to 1945: USSCallaghanDD792

* 26 of 415

destroyers In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

** 4 of 30 *** ... ** 10 of 175 *** ... *** , *** ... ** 5 of 58 *** *** ... *** ** 3 of 12 destroyer minelayers *** ... ** 4 of 98 *** ... * 4 s ** USS ''Acoma'' (YTB-701) ** YT Arawak YTM-702, removed from US Navy in December 1985 ** YT Canarsee, US Navy sold in 1975 ** YT Moratok, US Navy sold in 1985.

Southwestern Shipbuilding

Southwestern was the second largest of three steel shipyards in the Ports of Los Angeles and

Long Beach Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporated ...

active during the World War I shipbuilding boom, responsible for 28% of the tonnage built there for the

United States Shipping Board The United States Shipping Board (USSB) was established as an emergency agency by the 1916 Shipping Act (39 Stat. 729), on September 7, 1916. The United States Shipping Board's task was to increase the number of US ships supporting the World War ...

. Many of the ships were Design 1019 ships built under the USSB's

Emergency Fleet Corporation The Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC) was established by the United States Shipping Board, sometimes referred to as the War Shipping Board, on 16 April 1917 pursuant to the Shipping Act (39 Stat. 729) to acquire, maintain, and operate merchant shi ...

(EFC) contacts.Wartime Shipbuilding at Terminal Island
/ref> Ships built:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bethlehem Shipbuilding San Pedro American Theater of World War II 1940s in California Bethlehem shipyards Defunct shipbuilding companies of the United States Shipyards building World War II warships

World War II

Southwestern Shipbuilding

See also

References