King and Winge Shipbuilding Company facts for kids
| Private | |
| Industry | Shipbuilding |
| Fate | Ceased shipbuilding |
| Headquarters | Seattle, Washington |
The King and Winge Shipbuilding Company was a very important place for building and fixing ships in the early 1900s. It was located in West Seattle, near Puget Sound in Washington state. The company was owned by two men: Thomas J. King and Albert M. Winge.
Thomas King (1843–1925) learned how to build ships from a famous builder named Donald McKay. He moved to Puget Sound around 1880. Albert Winge was from Norway. Together, they started their own shipyard.
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Early Ship Projects
The King and Winge shipyard worked on many different kinds of ships. In 1905, they rebuilt a passenger steamer called Lady of the Lake. This ship had burned, but King and Winge turned it into a tugboat named Ruth.
In 1909, a steam tugboat named Elk was damaged. It was brought to King and Winge for repairs. In 1911, a gas schooner called E.L. Dwyer tipped over in Seattle. The shipyard fixed it up.
Also in 1911, a ship called Catharine M. was wrecked in Alaska. It was brought back to Seattle in 1912. King and Winge rebuilt it and put in a new engine.
Converting Sealing Ships
In 1911, hunting seals in the Arctic was banned. This meant many sealing boats needed new jobs. King and Winge helped convert some of these ships.
One famous ship they worked on was the schooner Casco. Years before, this ship had been used by the writer Robert Louis Stevenson for his travels. King and Winge added a gasoline engine to the Casco. They changed it so it could be used for fishing halibut.
Building the King & Winge Ship
By 1914, King and Winge owned two halibut fishing schooners. One was the Tom & Al, named after the owners, Tom King and Al Winge. This ship was 65 feet long and was still working in 1962. The other ship was named Gjoa.
In 1914, the company built their most famous ship, also named King & Winge. This ship was a halibut schooner. It was thought to be the most modern halibut fishing ship ever built at that time. It had a 140 horsepower engine and electric lights.
Later Years of the Shipyard
In 1919, the shipyard rebuilt a well-known steamer called Bellingham. They changed it into a barge, which is a flat-bottomed boat used for carrying goods.
Thomas J. King passed away in 1924. However, the shipyard continued to operate for some time. In 1925, King and Winge put a new oil engine into the former steam ferry Puget. This allowed the boat to run on a route between Anacortes and Vancouver. Around the same time, the shipyard changed the steamboat Clatawa into a ship that could carry cars.
Later, the shipyard's name changed to King Shipbuilding Co. The company eventually stopped building ships.
