Beverley Treasure House: Uncover The regions Ship Building

With all the present day talk about the Humber being around the renewable energy sector, it is often forgotten that the area has a rich association with shipbuilding.

It is fair to say that this industry has declined in over the years and for many it is a distant memory, but the time when shipyards were busy rolling out vessels onto the high seas was not as long ago as some people think.

The archives of one of the region’s major shipbuilding companies, Richard Dunston (Hessle) Limited, have recently been made available to the public and they reveal a fascinating insight into the region’s recent shipbuilding past.

Sam Bartle, collections officer at East Riding Archives and Local Studies, said:

“The records help to build a picture of the business as a whole and how it operated and the photographs give us an idea of the type of ships that were coming out of the Hessle yard between the 1920s and 1970s.”

Richard Dunston started building wooden barges in 1858 on the bank of the Stainforth and Keadby Canal in Thorne, South Yorkshire.

In 1902 control of the yard passed to Thomas Dunston and in 1910 it passed to the 20-year-old grandson of the founder. He took over Henry Scarr’s ship building business at Hessle in 1932 so larger iron and steel vessels could be launched into the River Humber. Henry Scarr himself had moved to Hessle in March 1897.

The company’s name changed from Henry Scarr Limited to Richard Dunston (Hessle) Limited in 1961. The Thorne and Hessle yards then came under the control of the American-owned Ingram Corporation.

In 1985 the yards were put up for sale again but the Thorne yard was closed as it was not financially viable. The Hessle yard was the subject of a management buy-out in late 1986, funded by capital from the Dutch Damen Shipyards Group.

In December 1994 the company went into liquidation and the Hessle yard was closed, as Dunston Ship Repairs was becoming established in Hull’s William Wright Dock. A total of 1,358 vessels were built at Thorne and 636 vessels at Hessle.

For more information, call (01482) 392794 or visit the Treasure House, Champney Road, Beverley.