- Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company
The Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company (ADDSCO) located in
Mobile, Alabama , was one of the largest marine production facilities in theUnited States of America during the 20th century. Beginning operation in 1917, the shipyard is presently owned by Atlantic Marine, headquartered inJacksonville, Florida .World War II
During and after
World War II , ADDSCO became the largestemployer in southernAlabama , buildingLiberty ships , tankers and other vessels from thekeel up, often at rapid speeds during the statesidewar effort . The first yard was built onPinto Island inMobile Bay . During World War II, the facility was primarily tasked for production of the Liberty ships, but wartime losses caused a shift to repair of tanker vessels. Twenty Liberty ships were produced in Mobile. cite web|title=Project Liberty Ship |url=http://www.liberty-ship.com/html/yards/alabamadd.html |accessdate=2007-11-21|type=html|language=english] From 1943 to 1945, 90 T-2 tanker ships were produced at ADDSCO. [cite web|title=T2 Tankers built by Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding |url=http://www.t2tanker.org/ships/alabama.html |accessdate=2007-11-21 |type=html |language=english]Employment expansion
Thousands made their way to Mobile to find work. 18,500 were employed by 1943 including 6,000 Africa-Americans.
Racial equality was an ongoing problem at the shipyard following the war. Although addressed repeatedly by bothmanagement andtrade union s a small race riot erupted forcing the temporary closing of the yard.Recent years
In the mid-1980s, the Mobile yard closed due to declining business and labor unrest. The facility later re-opened and remains in operation today. [cite news| title=TransOcean makes upper level waves |work=Times-Picayune (New Orleans)|date=1997-05-28 |accessdate=2007-11-21 |Last= Darcé |first=Keith |page=C1] It is now owned by an investment company headed by former U.S. Navy Secretary
John Lehman , and is known as Atlantic Marine Alabama. [cite web|url=http://www.flotte2.com/MobileEconomics|title=Flotte's Notes on Mobile, Alabama Economics|accessdate=2007-11-21]References
External links
* [http://www.atlanticmarine.com/about_us.htm Atlantic Marine web site]
* [http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-1475 ADDSCO article in the Encyclopedia of Alabama]
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