Edit Shipbuilding In Govan
With its many shipbuilding yards, Govan was perhaps best known the world over for its shipbuilding industry, although today you could be excused for overlooking this as only one survives.
The first yard in Govan was the "Old Yard" and was opened by McArthur & Alexander 1839 and lay just east of Water Row, in 1842 the yard was acquired by Robert Napier and his first ship the "Vanguard" was launched from the "Old Yard" in 1843.
In 1850 Napier opened the Govan East Yard "New Yard", next to the Middleton Yard which was opened by Smith & Rodgers in 1843, Napier's yards where training grounds for a whole generation of shipbuilders and engineers, who would go on to found their own companies throughout britain; two of these being John Elder and William Pearce. In 1853 after his sons took a more involved role in the company Napier renamed it Robert Napier & Sons.
The "Old Yard" was sold in 1858 and Robert Napier died in 1867, the "New Yard" was obtained by William Beardmore & Co in 1899 and then in 1905 it was sold onto the London & Glasgow Shipbuilding and Engineering Co who already owned the Middleton Yard which lay between Napier's old and new yards.
In 1912 Harland & Wolff acquired the "New Yard" and the Middleton Yard from London & Glasgow Shipbuilding and Engineering Co along with the "Old Yard" from Mackie & Thomson, the three yards were amalgamated and redeveloped to provide a total of seven building berths, a fitting-out basin and extensive workshops. With the decline of shipbuilding; sadly the yard closed in 1965, housing was built on much of the land in the 1970's but much of the land still remains derelict and unused today.
John Elder's firm Randolph, Elder and Co acquired Napier's "Old Yard" in 1860; however a modern ship and engine building yard was needed and Elder purchased land beside a small farm called Fairfield which lay further to the west of the "Old Yard". In 1869, Charles Randolph retired and John Elder became sole proprietor of the Govan yard, The yard consisted of six shipbuilding berths and a fitting out basin and was completed in 1871, unfortunately John Elder did not live to see it completed as he died in 1869, however he did see four ships launched there.
Following Elder's death his wife Isabella took over the running of the company in partnership with her brother J.F.Ure, J.L.K.Jamieson and William Pearce a former manager at Napier's yard, the company was the renamed John Elder & Co. in his memory. When Ure and Jamieson retired it left Pearce as sole partner, and in 1886 he formed the Fairfield Engineering and Shipbuilding Co Ltd a title it would hold for eighty years. Under Pearce the yard built a series of Atlantic record breakers starting with the Arizona and ending with the Lucania. After the death of Pearce's son in 1907 the yard passed to Northumberland Shipping Co until the Lithgow Group purchased it in 1935.
In the 1950's, the yard underwent a major modernisation programme which was implemented slowly over a period of ten years to minimise disruption to the yard, however despite this investment, the 60's was to prove disastrous for Fairfield and Clyde shipbuilding, in 1965 shortly after the completion of the £4 million modernisation programme, it was announced that Fairfield's was in receivership, closures had already stared along the Clyde with Simons Lobnitz in Renfrew, followed by Denny's in Dumbarton and Harland & Wolff in Govan.
In 1966, the Labour Government intervened and set up a new company, Fairfield (Glasgow) Limited, The 'Fairfield Experiment' as it was known was short lived and in 1967 the yard was incorporated into Upper Clyde Shipbuilders as the Govan Division leaving the Fairfield name in history, In 1971 the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders too went into liquidation resulting in a 14 month "work-in" campaign to save the yards and after a merger with Scotstoun Marine formerly Charles Connell's yard, Govan Shipbuilders was born.
It was nationalised by the Government in 1977 becoming part of British Shipbuilders, Govan Shipbuilders was sold to kvaerner in 1988 then to GEC Marconi in 1995, British Aerospace purchased Marconi Electronic Systems and its Marine unit in 1998 The shipbuilding operations became BAE Systems Marine, now BAE Systems Naval Ships.
There where and continues to be many great ships built in Govan, below is just some of them:
Vanguard (1843)
Persia (1854)
Erebus (1856)
Black Prince (1860)
SS Verona (1865)
SS Benin (1869)
HMS Northampton (1876)
HMS Nelson (1876)
SS Arizona (1879)[5]
Livadia (1880)[5]
Victoria (1886)[5]
RMS Campania (1891)
RMS Lucania (1893)
SS Armadale Castle (1903)[5]
HMS Cochrane (1905)[5]
HMS Commonwealth (1905)[5]
SS Empress Of Britain (1905)[5]
SS Empress Of Ireland (1906)[5]
HMS Indomitable (1907)[5]
SS Balmoral Castle (1910)[5]
HMS New Zealand (1911)
HMAS Sydney (1912)
SS Empress Of Russia (1912)[5]
SS Empress Of Asia (1912)[5]
SS Calgarian (1913)[5]
HMS Valiant (1914)
HMS Renown (1916)
SS Empress Of Canada (1920)[5]
SS Athenia (1922)
Aorangi (1922)
TSS Tuscania (1923)
SS Letitia (1924)
MV Speybank (1926)
HMS Berwick (1926)
HMS Norfolk (1928)
RMS Empress of Japan (1930)
HMS Delight (1932)
HMS Woolwich (1934)
HMS Liverpool (1937)
HMS Phoebe (1937)
HMS Howe (1940)
HMS Bellona (1942)
HMS Implacable (1942)
HMS Theseus (1944)
HMS Chichester
HMS Blake (1945)
TS Oxfordshire (1955)
TS Empress Of Britain (1955)[6]
Leecliffe Hall (1961)
HMS Fife (1964)
HMS Antrim (1967)
USNS Harkness (1968)
HMAS Jervis Bay (1969)
Pacifique (1969)
USNS Chauvenet (1970)
Pacific Peace (1981)
MV Selkirk Settler (1983)
MV Saskatchewan Pioneer (1983)
St. Lawrence Seaway (1983)
Sir charles Parsons (1985)
MV Norsea (1986)
MV Havis (1992)
Sea Launch Commander (1996)
RFA Wave Ruler (2002)
HMS Dauntless (2007)
HMS Diamond (2007)
Colin Quigley 2008
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