"The Shipbuilding Industry of Southwest England, 1790-1913"

Summary

Introduction

Comprising the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset, the peninsular region of southwest England was home to a range of maritime activities during the nineteenth century. Shipbuilding was one of the most prominent, in relation to both the local and national economies. During the final quarter of the century, however, shipbuilding contracted to such a degree that on the eve of the First World War only a few yards were left, producing a tiny fraction of the UK's output. The fluctuating fortunes of this regional industry is the concern of this paper. Attention will be focused initially on the scale and character of the southwest's output, and then on the economic forces which conditioned its shipbuilding performance.

Output

The output of the southwest's nineteenth-century shipbuilding industry can be divided into three parts. The first was the construction throughout the era of relatively small wooden merchant sailing vessels. The maintenance and modification of commercial vessels comprised the second facet of the industry's output. Third, warshipbuilding was also undertaken in private shipyards, notably during the Napoleonic Wars. The extent and composition of these sectors will be considered separateiy.

Merchant Shipbuilding

The number and tonnage of commercial vessels built in Britain can be measured with some degree of accuracy for much of the nineteenth century. While Customs returns provide data for the years 1787-1808, various accounts presented to Parliament yield output figures for nearly every year until 1866. From this date, annual port-by-port data are available in the Annual Statements of Navigation and Shipping. Yet these sources do not reflect the full range of shipbuilding production, since vessels which were not registered because of size or occupation are excluded. Moreover, the data are primarily quantitative, affording little consideration to the value or quality of the vessels.

Nevertheless, available national output data provide a context in which to place the contribution of a particular port or region. Problems arise, however, in the examination of production at the local level. Comparison with other sources reveals minor discrepancies in Customs returns up to 1808, while the Parliamentary accounts of later periods often conflict, though never very seriously, with detailed analyses of particular ports.