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hip Work Ends At Hog Island Construction Stops At Great Yard Which Proved World Wonder--Main Achievements of fae oi built up during the war emergency to "manufacture" ships, will pass out of existence with the closing of the current year. The last of the contract vessels has been launched and will be fitted-out and turned over to the Emergency Fleet corporation by the end of the year, The American International Shipbuilding Corp., which was or- ganized by the American International Corp. for the pur- pose of taking the contract with the government for '"manu- factured" ships, will also be dissolved immediately the work is completed. This corporation was capitalized at but $2000 and its demise is important only for the work at Hog Island. The operating corporation originally owned the land upon which the Hog Island plant was constructed, but that prop- erty was taken over by the shipping board early in 1920. All the structures on the land were owned by the shipping board. 'In 1917, Hog Island was a swamp and the year 1921 may display it as one of the magnificent engineering ruins of the world war although various plans for its regenera- tion are advanced. Immediately the last vessel was launched in July active work at salvaging the plant began. The derricks on the ways were shored and the hoists removed. All the lost rivets were being recovered with the use of electric magnets. The greater part of the electrical equipment of the yard was sold. Ail the surplus and removable material, including the material purchased to construct 35 class B ships which were not built, is to be sold. The yard would make an excellent combination ship- repair, shipbuilding, and terminal plant by using a part H« ISLAND has finished. This spectacular shipyard Sept. 13, 1917, contract. for building horsepower and will make a. speed of of the ways for ship construction and placing one or more drydocks of large capacity where the other ways are now located. With a water frontage of 21%4 miles the plant is excellently adapted to these purposes, but the actual fate of the yard is still in doubt. Grass is already growing in some of the abandoned ways, and the shipping board is selling to second-hand dealers everything that is removable. It is reputed that some private firms have attempted to obtain title to parts of the yard, but none of the big corporations has indicated a desire for the complete property. Apparently it is too large a proposition for any single private agency to swing, and a prospect exists that either the federal government, the state of Pennsylvania, or the city of Philadelphia will acquire title and put the plant to some commercial use. Chairman Benson of the shipping board, after declaring that in his opinion Hog Island was one of the three big outstanding features of the war, said the plant would not be abandoned. Hog Island was a wartime project, and, as such, more than did its part in the winning of the war. Its peacetime effort 'to aid in establishing the American flag on the seven seas also brought to it the glory it deserves. It has ainply demonstrated that quality production of ships is accomplished almost as easily as that of hair-pins, sewing- machines, bolts, or screws, and above all, it demonstrated tliat American ingenuity is not yet dead. Its record is one of which maritime America may. well be proud. Hog Island's history is summarized as follows: eo four or five months to complete. Of the Hog Island shipyard signed by the shipping board. Sept. 20, 1917, work of actually build-- ing the vard started. Feb, 12, 1918, first keel laid. Aug. 5, 1918, the Quisrconck, the first ship was launched. By Dec. 31, 1918 12 cargo vessels had been launched and ships in various stages of completion were on the other 50 ways. July 21, 1920, the last vessel, the CATAHOULA, was launched, and work of salvaging the yard started in earnest. On Aug. 1, 1920, the yard had de- livered 93 of the cargo carriers to the owners, Shipyard had 50 ways and_ seven fitting-out Piers. The day the last ship was launched, . others were launched with it, within the record time of 87 minutes. A total of 122 ships were built at this e including 110 cargo carriers, 11 °° transports, and one navy aircraft tender, oe ats, known as "A" type, a 825 deadweight tons each, are a . long and of 54 feet beam. cies € oil burners, driven by General © geared turbines of 2500 shaft 14. knots. the B pe. meactic 8000 deadweight tons. © The aggregate deadweight tonnage launched at the plant is 956,750, nearly one-tenth of the entire tonnage of steel ships launched from all the shipyards of the United States in the same period and 50 per cent of the Delaware river shipyards' contribution to the new American merchant marine. A Ship in 36 Hours Employing 35,000 men and women when its operations were at the peak, the plant during the year ended July 21, 1920, launched a ship every 3% working: days or 28% working hours and de- livered a complete vessel every 44 working days or 36 working hours. In building the 122 ships, 356,018 tons of- steel were erected and 64,573,- 486 rivets driven into the hulls. Placed end to end, the 122 ships launched would reach from Market street wharf, Philadelphia, down the Delaware river to Essington, 2 miles below the shipyard, a total distance of nearly 9 miles. July 30, 1920, 29 vessels werd being outfitted in the wet basin of the plant. This work will require approximately 499 all cargo carriers launched, 93 had been delivered to the Emergency Fleet cor- poration. Up to July 25, 1920, the Hog Island vessels had steamed approximately 2,500,000 miles, and had carried more than 2,500,000 tons of American prod- ucts to all the important ports of the world. To this date, not a single complaint has been made against the vessels, they having delivered their cargoes safely in every instance. The Quistconck, the first vessel -launched at Hog' Island, has steamed 63,000 miles. She was drydocked once after covering 37,500 miles for the pur- pose of scraping and painting the bot- tom of the hull. The vessel has been in constant. service without any diffi- culty whatever, and has never failed nor shown material, structural or work- manship weakness from the day she was launched. The wheels of these ships make 90 revolutions per minute, reduced from 3600 revolutions. The ships each burn approximately 28 tons of fuel oil a day, and have a steaming radius of 15,000 miles. They can each carry 6000 tons of cargo.