William Pile (shipbuilder)
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William Pile (10 October 1823 – 5 June 1873) was a British
shipbuilder 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 ...
. 'His genius was displayed in the building of ships, wherein he was not excelled. As
Watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...
was great as a builder of engines; and Stephenson was great as a builder of railways; so William Pile was great as a builder of ships.'The Sunderland Times, June 10, 1873 He was the first to introduce the
Clipper A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century merchant sailing vessel, designed for speed. Clippers were generally narrow for their length, small by later 19th century standards, could carry limited bulk freight, and had a large total sail area. "C ...
class of ship to the river
Wear Wear is the damaging, gradual removal or deformation of material at solid surfaces. Causes of wear can be mechanical (e.g., erosion) or chemical (e.g., corrosion). The study of wear and related processes is referred to as tribology. Wear in m ...
,
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
. A testament to his art can be seen today, the
Composite Composite or compositing may refer to: Materials * Composite material, a material that is made from several different substances ** Metal matrix composite, composed of metal and other parts ** Cermet, a composite of ceramic and metallic materials ...
Clipper ship ''
City of Adelaide The City of Adelaide, also known as the Corporation of the City of Adelaide and Adelaide City Council is a local government area in the metropolitan area of greater Adelaide, South Australia and is legally defined as the capital city of South ...
''. The ship was classed as "Experimental" by
Lloyd's of London Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gov ...
in 1864; it would be a few years before Lloyds would formalise the rules for constructing composite ships, the rules for which were used for the design and construction of the composite Clipper ship ''
Cutty Sark ''Cutty Sark'' is a British clipper ship. Built on the River Leven, Dumbarton, Scotland in 1869 for the Jock Willis Shipping Line, she was one of the last tea clippers to be built and one of the fastest, coming at the end of a long period of ...
''. His bust, now on display in the
Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens is a municipal museum in Sunderland, England. It contains the only known British example of a gliding reptile, the oldest known vertebrate capable of gliding flight. The exhibit was discovered in Eppleton qua ...
, was paid for by donations from his friends.


Childhood

William Pile was born on 10 October 1823 at the White House, Low Southwick, Sunderland, son of William and Mary Pile and brother to John. The house was surrounded by the
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 ...
of J. Mills, for whom his grandfather, another William Pile, was superintending the construction of wooden ships.Where ships are born: J. W. Smith and T. S. Holden:1946, Reed (Sunderland) p.32 He was baptised at
St Peter's Church, Monkwearmouth St Peter's Church, Monkwearmouth is the parish church of Monkwearmouth in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. It is one of three churches in the Parish of Monkwearmouth. The others are the Victorian All Saints' Church, Monkwearmouth and the Edw ...
on 28 October 1823. Pile's ancestors, who were farmers, had arrived in Sunderland around 1770 from
Rothbury Rothbury is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the River Coquet. It is northwest of Morpeth, Northumberland, Morpeth and of Newcastle upon Tyne. At the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2001 Ce ...
,
Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...
. His grandfather was the first shipbuilder of the family, being so adept that he was made manager of a shipyard shortly after completing his apprenticeship. Preferring to manage rather than build on his own account, his ships were considered to be well-built and fast. He passed on his good knowledge of both the theory and practice of shipbuilding to many of people who subsequently built on the Wear, including William. Pile's father was also noted for his well-modelled ships and considered the first shipbuilder of his day. At a very early age, Pile took great interest in everything connected with ships and could not be kept out of the shipyard. In 1823 he moved to
Monkwearmouth Monkwearmouth is an area of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear in North East England. Monkwearmouth is located at the north side of the mouth of the River Wear. It was one of the three original settlements on the banks of the River Wear along with Bisho ...
. He began constructing little ships with paper sails from the age of five and from these he advanced to little
yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...
s with cotton sails which he sailed in local ponds and streams.The Sunderland Times, 26 June 1874"The past and present history of the north sands shipyards and their surroundings from 1823 to 1891": by John Thompson: William Duncan, printer, York Street, Sunderland When asked by a friend, as to the shape of his yachts, he replied "Cod's head and mackerel tail", a shape favoured by British boat designers from as far back as the 18th century. During the 1830s, Sunderland became the most important shipbuilding centre in the country, and by 1840 there were 65 shipyards on the river.Shipbuilding 1790 to 1899
/ref> It was at this time, that Pile walked the banks of the River Wear, visiting the shipyards and never growing tired of seeing ships in the various stages of construction. As he grew older he could tell the name of every ship belonging to Sunderland, and who built them. It was said of him after his death, that being born in a shipyard he was hardly ever out of one.


Education

Pile disliked school and thus received little education.Sunderland & Durham County Herald Friday 6 June 1873 He was put to work very young. His character was more practical than theoretical, trusting more to their eye than the plan. He constantly watched the progress of the ships he had built, corresponding with their captains. His custom was to seek information where he thought it was to be got, and to get it he used periodically to visit the largest ports of the United Kingdom.


Shipwright training

Pile's mother and or father apparently did not appreciate his shipbuilding disposition and preferred him to work in a ropery. This employment however did not last long, as he ended his engagement by running away from it after six weeks. His family must have relented as it is recorded that he served his time as a shipwright with his father. In 1836, Pile's family moved to
Stockton-on-Tees Stockton-on-Tees, often simply referred to as Stockton, is a market town in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham, England. It is on the northern banks of the River Tees, part of the Teesside built-up area. The town had an estimated ...
. At the age of 18, an accident caused his right hand to be nearly cut in two; this crippled him to a great extent for the rest of his life. On his recovery, he went to a shipbuilder in Monkwearmouth to complete his apprenticeship. There his talent was recognised; he was promoted to foreman and was in charge of a yard with a large number of men. He continued with his relations until 1848 when he left their yard to commence on his own account. When his brother moved to
Hartlepool Hartlepool () is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Borough of Hartlepool. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County ...
, in 1853, William took the whole of the establishment.


Death

William Pile died on 5 June 1873, aged 49. He was suddenly seized with contractions of the bowels and died after suffering severely for a few hours. He was survived by his wife and six surviving children. He had married Isabella Rickaby, of Coniscliffe, near Darlington in 1849. Pile's funeral was conducted at St Mary's Roman Catholic Church, Sunderland. The church was crowded and many were unable to gain admission; the funeral procession was over two miles in length and comprised over 3000 people. '' The Sunderland Times'' said that "His genius was displayed in the building of ships, wherein he was not excelled. As Watt was great as a builder of engines; and Stephenson was great as a builder of railways; so William Pile was great as a builder of ships."


Accolades

John Thompson writes of what he saw on the river Wear in the year 1850: Thompson also noted that the Pile brothers were among the first, at all events, in this river, to introduce long ships with beam in proportion. Their vessels were of large dimensions, and the items of their fittings enormously costly, and they won for the builders the high name they attained in every quarter of the globe. It was here the first improvements in modelling took place, the old-fashioned counter was abolished, and all the planking turned up to the arch-board; the old-fashioned stern-frame and transoms were done away with, and the vessel framed all round the stern. The first clipper stem was her put up that was seen on the Wear, and was, as it was then termed, turned inside out and upside down, and which is still continued by the builders on the Wear up to the present day.(1874). Pile was the first to introduce the Clipper class of vessel to Sunderland and by his skill in building them he gained recognition in the nautical world.


Ships

Pile built more than a hundred wooden ships, a similar number made of iron, and a number of
composite ship The technique of composite ship construction (wooden planking over a wrought iron frame) emerged in the mid-19th century as the final stage in the evolution of fast commercial sailing ships. Construction of wrought iron hulled vessels had begun i ...
s. Although many of the iron ships were steamers, it was his sailing ships that brought renown to his name. The following are some of the ships built by Pile:


References

Notes Citations


Further reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pile, William English shipbuilders 1823 births 1873 deaths People from Sunderland Businesspeople from Tyne and Wear 19th-century English businesspeople