Alameda Works Shipyard
Encyclopedia
The Alameda Works Shipyard, in Alameda, California
, United States
, was one of the largest and best equipped shipyard
s in the country. The only building remaining from the yard is the Union Iron Works Powerhouse, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
(later called Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation
) in 1916 and came to be known as the Alameda Works.
The site was expanded from 7 acres (28,328 m²) to 75 acres (303,514.5 m²) with facilities for constructing up to six major vessels simultaneously. After 1923, the Alameda Works ceased making ships but continued its dry dock
ing and ship repairing operations.
At the beginning of World War II
, the Alameda Works was re-established as the Bethlehem Alameda Shipyard, and modernized and expanded to include new shipways and on-site worker housing. During the war, the yard repaired more than 1,000 vessels and produced P-2 Admiral-type troop ships, and it continued to produce structural steel. Shipbuilding came to an end in the early 1950s, and the yard was closed in 1956.
was designed by San Francisco
architect
Frederick Meyer
, one of many designed for the Pacific Gas and Electric Company
in Northern California
between 1905 and the 1920s. It is a one-story rectangular industrial building, 25 feet (7.6 m) high, 53 (16 m) feet wide and 110 feet (33.3 m) long, which rests on a concrete base. Borrowing imagery from classical antiquity
and the Renaissance
, the powerhouse is an excellent example of a building type-the "beautiful" power house-for which the San Francisco Bay Area
was nationally known. It contained several large generators
and was constructed specifically to meet the massive electricity
requirements of the yards.
Today, the little building that once powered an entire shipyard has been converted into private office space and is closed to the public.
Alameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, was one of the largest and best equipped shipyard
Shipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
s in the country. The only building remaining from the yard is the Union Iron Works Powerhouse, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
History
Established in the early 1900s by the United Engineering Company, the yard was purchased by Union Iron WorksUnion Iron Works
Union Iron Works, located in San Francisco, California, on the southeast waterfront, was a central business within the large industrial zone of Potrero Point, for four decades at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries.-History:...
(later called Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation
Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation
Bethlehem Steel Corporation Shipbuilding Division was created in 1905 when Bethlehem Steel Corporation acquired the San Francisco shipyard Union Iron Works in 1905...
) in 1916 and came to be known as the Alameda Works.
The site was expanded from 7 acres (28,328 m²) to 75 acres (303,514.5 m²) with facilities for constructing up to six major vessels simultaneously. After 1923, the Alameda Works ceased making ships but continued its dry dock
Dry dock
A drydock is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform...
ing and ship repairing operations.
At the beginning of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the Alameda Works was re-established as the Bethlehem Alameda Shipyard, and modernized and expanded to include new shipways and on-site worker housing. During the war, the yard repaired more than 1,000 vessels and produced P-2 Admiral-type troop ships, and it continued to produce structural steel. Shipbuilding came to an end in the early 1950s, and the yard was closed in 1956.
Union Iron Works Powerhouse
This power stationPower station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
was designed by San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
Frederick Meyer
Frederick Meyer
Frederick Heinrich Wilhelm Meyer , was an art educator prominent in the Arts and Crafts movement in the San Francisco Bay Area.-Early years:...
, one of many designed for the Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
The Pacific Gas and Electric Company , commonly known as PG&E, is the utility that provides natural gas and electricity to most of the northern two-thirds of California, from Bakersfield almost to the Oregon border...
in Northern California
Northern California
Northern California is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The San Francisco Bay Area , and Sacramento as well as its metropolitan area are the main population centers...
between 1905 and the 1920s. It is a one-story rectangular industrial building, 25 feet (7.6 m) high, 53 (16 m) feet wide and 110 feet (33.3 m) long, which rests on a concrete base. Borrowing imagery from classical antiquity
Classical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
and the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
, the powerhouse is an excellent example of a building type-the "beautiful" power house-for which the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
was nationally known. It contained several large generators
Electrical generator
In electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...
and was constructed specifically to meet the massive electricity
Electric power
Electric power is the rate at which electric energy is transferred by an electric circuit. The SI unit of power is the watt.-Circuits:Electric power, like mechanical power, is represented by the letter P in electrical equations...
requirements of the yards.
Today, the little building that once powered an entire shipyard has been converted into private office space and is closed to the public.