Portland Oregon waterfront sternwheelers fitting out 1898

Willamette Iron Works (also known as Willamette Iron and Steel Company or WISCO) was a general foundry and machine business established in 1865 in Portland, Oregon, originally specializing in the manufacture of

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...

boilers and engines. In 1904, the company changed its name to Willamette Iron and Steel Works, under which name it operated continually until its close in 1990.

Willamette Iron and Steel Works Scotch Boiler Ad 1918

The works was very busy during the World War I shipbuilding boom, building boilers for

Northwest Steel Northwest Steel was a small shipyard in Portland, Oregon. Little is known of its background or owners, but during World War I the yard built cargo ships for the United States Shipping Board (USSB). Some 37 of the 46 ships ship built at Northwest S ...

and Albina Engine & Machine Works in Portland,

G. M. Standifer Construction The G. M. Standifer Construction Company was an American company that built three shipyards on the Columbia River for the World War I effort, one in Oregon and two in Washington (state), Washington, all within spitting distance of each other. After ...

in Vancouver, Union Iron Works, Schaw-Batcher and the

Moore Dry Dock Company Moore Dry Dock Company was a ship repair and shipbuilding company in Oakland, California. In 1905, Robert S. Moore, his brother Joseph A. Moore, and John Thomas Scott purchased the National Iron Works located in the Hunter's Point section o ...

in San Francisco, Southwestern Shipbuilding and the Long Beach Shipbuilding Company in Los Angeles,

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 Worl ...

, J. F. Duthie and Ames in Seattle and Todd Construction in Tacoma, as well as completely fitting out ships launched by

. During World War II, Willamette Iron & Steel was itself in the shipbuilding business: small naval auxiliaries, minesweepers, patrol craft,

submarine chaser A submarine chaser or subchaser is a small naval vessel that is specifically intended for anti-submarine warfare. Many of the American submarine chasers used in World War I found their way to Allied nations by way of Lend-Lease in World War II. ...

s, and non-self-propelled

lighters A lighter is a portable device which creates a flame, and can be used to ignite a variety of items, such as cigarettes, gas lighter, fireworks, candles or campfires. It consists of a metal or plastic container filled with a flammable liquid or ...

. These were built through WISCO's relationship with

Henry Kaiser Henry John Kaiser (May 9, 1882 – August 24, 1967) was an American industrialist who became known as the father of modern American shipbuilding. Prior to World War II, Kaiser was involved in the construction industry; his company was one of ...

. The company built more than 70 ships during World War II, but they were smaller than those built by the three nearby Kaiser Shipyards. The ships were built on contract to the US and British governments. Between the wars, the shipyard concentrated on building small commercial vessels. During the 1920s, the company manufactured a geared steam

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the Power (physics), motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, Motor coach (rail), motor ...

known as the "Willamette", a Shay-type locomotive for use in logging operations in Washington and Oregon. Between 1901 and 1931 Willamette built over 2500 steam donkeys for use in the logging industry. During World War II Willamette assembled over 800 Russian gauge Baldwin steam locomotives and shipped them to Vladivostok. NW Front Ave. in Portland had a short distance of Russian gauge track for the engines to move from the engine house on the west side of Front to the loading dock on the east side of the street. These were shipped across the Pacific on USSR flagged ships, since the USSR and the Empire of Japan were not at war. A Porter 0-6-0 was bought from the US Government in Panama to switch the broad gauge track. In the early 1970s, the company manufactured the first three turbine units for the third powerhouse to be built at Grand Coulee Dam. The company also made fire hydrants for the city of Portland in the late 19th century. In 1945, after World War II ended, Willamette Iron and Steel continued as mostly a ship repair facility. Over the years, business dropped as larger shipyards grew, and Willamette finally closed in 1990.

World War II Ships

* 2 of 2 ''Catskill''-class landing ships: , * 23 of 123 s ** ... ** , , ** ... * 14 of 68 s ** PCE-891 ... PCE-904 * 9 lighters: YFN-743 ... YFN-751 * 6 barracks barges: APL-41 ... APL-46 * 8 to 10 of 45 s (completion of Todd Tacoma hull) ** http://shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/large/toddtacoma.htm (disagrees:http://shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/small/willamette.htm) ** (disagrees:) ** (AVG-22) ** (AVG-24) ** , , ** , , * 1 of 19 s (completion of Todd Tacoma hull) ** * 3 of 30 s (conversion of

hull) ** , , * references:

Notes

References

{{Authority control Defunct companies based in Oregon Companies established in 1865 Defunct shipbuilding companies of the United States History of transportation in Oregon Defunct locomotive manufacturers of the United States Ironworks and steel mills in the United States Manufacturing companies based in Portland, Oregon Shipbuilding companies of Oregon 1865 establishments in Oregon 1990 disestablishments in Oregon American companies established in 1865