King and Winge Shipbuilding Company

The King and Winge Shipbuilding Company was an important maritime concern in the early 1900s on Puget Sound. The shipyard was located at West Seattle. The owners were Thomas J. King (1843-1925) and Albert M Winge. King was born in Boston and learned to build ships under the famous Donald McKay. He came to Puget Sound in about 1880, and worked in the shipyards of Hall Bros. and T.W. Lake before starting his own shipyard with Winge. [Newell, Gordon R., ed., "H.W. McCurdy Maritime History of Pacific Northwest", at page 358, Superior Publishing, Seattle, WA 1966] . King’s partner, Albert L. Winge was a native of Norway.

Early marine construction

In 1902, the passenger steamer "Lady of the Lake", built at Lake Washington in 1897, burned and was rebuilt in 1905 by King and Winge as the tug "Ruth". [McCurdy, at 20 and 113] In 1909, the steam tug "Elk" was wrecked at Restoration Point but was salvaged and towed to King and Winge for repairs. [McCurdy, at 168] In February 1911, the gas schooner "E.L. Dwyer" capsized at a pier in Seattle, as her cook, almost submerged in cold salt water, was incongruously shouting “Fire, fire!” She was repaired at King and Winge. [McCurdy, at 196] Also in 1911, the cannery tender "Catharine M.", of the Pillar Point Packing Company, was wrecked in Alaska. She was salved sufficiently to be returned to Seattle in 1912 to the King and Winge shipyard, where she was rebuilt and refitted with a Union gasoline engine. [McCurdy, at 206]

Seal hunting in the Arctic, which had come close to exterminating the herds, was banned in 1911 by international treaty. This meant a number of sealing boats had to be converted to other duties, which included the schooner "Casco", which many years before had been one of the boats on which Robert Lewis Stevenson cruised the south seas. King and Winge converted installed a gasoline auxiliary engine in her and converted her to serve in the halibut fishery. [McCurdy at 207]

Building of the "King & Winge"

By 1914, King and Winge had built or acquired two power halibut schooners, the ex-"Ragnhild", now named the "Tom & Al" (presumably named after Tom King and Al Winge) and the "Gjoa". The "Tom & Al", 65' long, was built in 1900 and was still in operation as late as 1962 as a dragger and whaler under Eben and Frank Parker of Astoria, Oregon. [Jacobi, Wayne, “King & Winge: Versatile Ship Comes Home,” "Seattle Times", January 5, 1962, page 33.]

In that year, the firm built to add to their halibut boats, their most well-known vessel, the "King & Winge", originally a halibut schooner. "King & Winge" was considered the most modern halibut schooner yet constructed. [McCurdy, at 242] She had a convert|140|hp engine, and electric lights.

Later years

In 1919, the yard rebuilt the well-known steamer "Bellingham"(ex-"Willapa", ex-"General Miles") into a barge. [Kline, M.S., and Bayless, G.A., "Ferry Boats – A Legend on Puget Sound", at 23, Bayless Books, Seattle, WA 1983 ISBN 0-914515-00-4] Thomas J. King died in 1924, but the shipyard continued, at least for a time. In 1925, King and Winge repowered the former steam ferry "Puget" with an oil engine, so the boat could be run on the Puget Sound Navigation Company’s Anacortes-Vancouver route. [McCurdy, at 366] The yard name later changed to King Shipbuilding Co. [McCurdy, at 420. The name change is believed to have occurred when James E. King, possibly the son of Thomas J. King, took over the firm following the death of Albert M. Winge, but a source is needed on this.] About the same time the yard converted the steamboat "Clatawa" into an autocarrier. [Kline and Bayless, at 167]

ee also

King & Winge (fishing schooner)

External links

Photographs

* [http://content.lib.washington.edu/cgi-bin/viewer.exe?CISOROOT=/imlsmaritime&CISOPTR=282&CISORESTMP=&CISOVIEWTMP=&CISOMODE=bib King and Winge shipyard, 1901, showing a wide variety of vessel types on ways, including sidewheel, sternwheel, and propeller-driven steamboats]
* [http://content.lib.washington.edu/cgi-bin/viewer.exe?CISOROOT=/transportation&CISOPTR=479 another photo of King & Winge Shipyard, showing different vessels, including early ferry "City of Seattle".]

References