Workman, Clark and Company, also known as Workman & Clark, was a shipbuilding company based in

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

. It operated from 1879 until it went out of business in 1935.

History

The business was established by Frank Workman and George Clark in

Belfast Harbour Belfast Harbour is a major maritime hub in Belfast, Northern Ireland, handling 67% of Northern Ireland's seaborne trade and about 25% of the maritime trade of the entire island of Ireland. It is a vital gateway for raw materials, exports and c ...

in 1879 and incorporated as Workman, Clark and Company Limited in 1880. Both founders had family connections in the shipbuilding industry and had previously worked for

Harland & Wolff Harland & Wolff Holdings plc is a British shipbuilding and Metal fabrication, fabrication company headquartered in London with sites in Belfast, Arnish yard, Arnish, Appledore, Torridge, Appledore and Methil. It specialises in ship repair, ship ...

. By 1895 it was the fourth largest shipbuilder in the

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the union of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into one sovereign state, established by the Acts of Union 1800, Acts of Union in 1801. It continued in this form until ...

and by 1900 it was building transatlantic liners for major customers such as

Cunard Line The Cunard Line ( ) is a British shipping and an international cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its four ships have been r ...

and

Alfred Holt Alfred Holt (13 June 1829 – 28 November 1911) was a British engineer, ship owner and merchant. He lived at Crofton, Sudley Road, Aigburth in Liverpool, England. Holt is credited with establishing the long distance steamship by developi ...

. It expanded further to meet demand during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and was acquired by the

Northumberland Shipbuilding Company The Northumberland Shipbuilding Company was a shipbuilding business based at Howdon in Tyne and Wear. History The company was established by Harry S. Edwards in Howdon in 1883. Following the death of the founder the business was bought by Rowla ...

in 1918. Both founders retired from the board in 1921 after various problems at the company. Northumberland Shipbuilding went into receivership in 1927. Workman, Clark and Company was then temporarily resurrected, only to go into receivership itself in 1935.

Frank Workman

Frank Workman, then a

city councillor, was a leading figure in the foundation in 1912 of the Young Citizen Volunteers (YCV). From soon after its inception the YCV faced financial problems, and by early 1914 Workman was paying for the upkeep of the group from his own funds.

References

External links

* {{Authority control British companies established in 1880 Defunct shipbuilding companies of Northern Ireland Companies based in Belfast Engineering companies of Northern Ireland Manufacturing companies established in 1880 British companies disestablished in 1935