Industrializing American Shipbuilding The Transformation of Ship Design And Construction, 1820-1920

"A thoroughly researched, original and thought provoking look at the development of the American shipbuilding industry, and particularly at the role of the U.S. Navy in the revitalization of American shipbuilding in the late 19th century."-Donald L. Canney, naval historian, U.S. Coast Guard Center "A useful blend of the technical and social history of a truly resourceful industry. . . . Thiesen's extensive research illustrates the nature of innovation and the degree of cross-Atlantic technological exchange from the early 19th to early 20th centuries."-Nathan Richards, East Carolina University Throughout the 19th century, the shipbuilding industry in America was both art and craft, one based on tradition, instinct, hand tools, and handmade ship models. Even as mechanization was introduced, the trade supported a system of apprenticeship, master builders, and family dynasties, and aesthetics remained the basis for design. Spanning the transition from wood to iron shipbuilding in America, Thiesen's history tells how practical and nontheoretical methods of shipbuilding began to be discarded by the 1880s in favor of technical and scientific methods. Perceiving that British warships were superior to its own, the United States Navy set out to adopt British design principles and methods. American shipbuilders wanted only to build better warships, but embracing British practices exposed them to new methods and technologies that aided in the transformation of American shipbuilding into an engineering-based industry. American shipbuilders soon improvised ways to turn U.S. shipyards into state-of-the-art facilities and, by the early 20th century, they forged ahead of the British in construction and production methods. The history of shipbuilding in America is a story of culture dictating technology. Thiesen describes the trans-Atlantic exchange of technical information that took place during this era and the role of the U.S. Navy in that transfer. He also profiles the lives of individual shipbuilders. Their stories will inspire enthusiasts of ships, shipbuilding, and shipbuilding technology, as well as historians and students of maritime history and the history of technology.Thiesen, William H. is the author of 'Industrializing American Shipbuilding The Transformation of Ship Design And Construction, 1820-1920', published 2006 under ISBN 9780813029405 and ISBN 0813029406.