History

United Engineering Co. (incorporated 10 October 1917, about six months after the sale of the predecessor company ''United Engineering Works'' to the

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 ...

where it became their Alameda Works), in

Alameda, California Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for "Avenue (landscape), tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, located in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is primarily located on Alameda (island), Alam ...

, was a

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 befor ...

and repair yard active during

World War II 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 opposin ...

. Located along the Oakland-Alameda Estuary, The yard was established in 1941, before that time, United Engineering owned facilities acquired from the

Risdon Iron Works Union Iron Works, located in San Francisco, California, on the southeast waterfront, was a central business within the large industrial zone of Potrero Point, for four decades at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries. ...

at Steuart and Folsom streets () and from T. J. Moynihan & Company the corner of Folsom and Fremont (), just north-west of where the

Oakland bay Bridge Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay ...

would later connect. United Engineering Works traces its history back to 1897. UEC obtained the rights to build

Franco Tosi Franco Tosi (21 April 1850 – 25 November 1898) was an Italian engineer, known for his contributions to the steam engine technology. A native of Villa Cortese, near Milan, he was the son of Eugenio Tosi (1815-1896), and moved to Legnano in 1876, ...

(

Legnano Legnano (; or ''Lignàn'') is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the north-westernmost part of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Province of Milan, about from central Milan. With 60,259, it is the thirteenth-most populous township in Lombardy. Le ...

, Italy) four-cycle marine diesel engines in 1919. In 1940 the shipyard in Alameda was constructed on property previously occupied by repair shops of the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

. Among its many activities, United Engineering built 21 oceangoing tugs for the U.S. Navy. The facilities that made up United Engineering were built by various interests from 1910–1915, and were first used for building the Red Cars of the extensive

East Bay Electric Lines The East Bay Electric Lines were a unit of the Southern Pacific Railroad that operated electric interurban-type trains in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area.Tufveson.Ford (1977). Beginning in 1862, the SP and its predecessors opera ...

of the

Southern Pacific company Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, ...

. They were expanded and converted to

shipyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...

use from 1941-1945. During both periods of its history, the facility was one of Alameda's largest employers and played an important economic and social role in the city. The facilities' shipbuilding use declined after World War II, and as of 2001, seventeen of its buildings remained on the site. Located at 2900 Main Street in Alameda, they were host to a ship repair yard and 44 smaller tenants. The yard's history has been documented by the

Historic American Engineering Record Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...

as United Engineering Company Shipyard, survey number HAER CA-295. In May 1946 United Engineering merged with the maintenance division of the

Matson Navigation Company Matson may refer to: * Matson (surname) *Matson, Gloucester, England, a suburb of Gloucester *Matson, Missouri, an unincorporated community * 2586 Matson, an asteroid * Matson, Inc., a shipping company, formerly Matson Navigation Company * Matson F ...

. * 8 of 29 s ** ... ** ... * 13 of 36 s ** ... By 1953 the yard was part of

Todd Shipyards Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporated ...

San Francisco Division.

In the press

References

External links

* {{commons category, United Engineering Company Shipyard, position=left Companies based in Alameda, California Shipbuilding companies of California Defunct manufacturing companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area History of Alameda County, California Historic American Engineering Record in California Shipyards in California

History

In the press

See also

References

External links