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{{Short description|Ship whose hull is primarily made of concrete}}
'''Concrete ships''' are
|title=S.S. Selma Ship Texas Historical Marker
|url=http://www.stoppingpoints.com/texas/sights.cgi?marker=SS+Selma&cnty=galveston
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[[Image:ConcreteBoatPlans.JPG|thumb|upright|Blueprints for a concrete boat]]
[[Image:ConcreteBoat pic1.JPG|thumb|Concrete boat constructed by Walter Dowsey hauled out in [[Chicago]]]]
[[File:Namsenfjord - no-nb digifoto 20160405 00015 NB NS NM 09922.jpg|thumb|The ''Namsenfjord'']]
The oldest known ferrocement watercraft was a [[dinghy]] built by [[Joseph-Louis Lambot]] in Southern [[France]] in 1848. Lambot's boat was featured in the [[Exposition Universelle (1855)|Exposition Universelle]] held in [[Paris]] in 1855.
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Beginning in the 1860s, ferrocement [[barge]]s were built in Europe for use on canals, and around 1896, an Italian engineer, Carlo Gabellini, began building small ships out of ferrocement. The most famous of his ships was the ''Liguria''.<ref name="eberhardt">Eberhardt, Robert. "Concrete Shipbuilding in San Diego, 1918–1920," ''Journal of San Diego History'', 41:2, Spring 1995.[http://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/95spring/shipbuilding.htm]</ref>
Between 1908 and 1914, larger ferrocement barges began to be made in
On August 2, 1917, Nicolay Fougner of Norway launched the first self-propelled ferrocement ship intended for ocean travel. This was an {{convert|84|foot|adj=on}} vessel of 400 tons named ''Namsenfjord''. With the success of this ship, additional ferrocement vessels were ordered, and in October 1917, the U.S. government invited Fougner to head a study into the feasibility of building ferrocement ships in the
About the same time, the California businessman [[William Leslie Comyn|W. Leslie Comyn]] took the initiative to build ferrocement ships on his own. He formed the San Francisco Ship Building Company (in [[Oakland, California]]), and hired Alan Macdonald and Victor Poss to design the first American ferrocement ship, a 6,125-ton steamer named the {{SS|Faith}}. ''Faith'' was launched March 18, 1918. She cost $750,000 to build. She was used to carry [[bulk cargo]] for trade until 1921, when she was sold and scrapped as a [[Breakwater (structure)|breakwater]] in
[[File:SS Palo Alto.jpg|thumb|The American concrete oil tanker ''[[SS Palo Alto|Palo Alto]]'', originally meant for merchant service in the first World War, but completed in 1919. (Naval History and Heritage Command - Photo NH 799)]]
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On April 12, 1918, President [[Woodrow Wilson]] approved the [[United States Shipping Board Merchant Fleet Corporation|Emergency Fleet Corporation]] program which oversaw the construction of 24 ferrocement ships for the war. However, when the war ended in November 1918, only 12 ferrocement ships were under construction and none of them had been completed. These 12 ships were eventually completed, but soon sold to private companies who used them for light-trading, storage, and scrap.<ref name="eberhardt"/>
Other countries that looked into ferrocement ship construction during this period included
Between the world wars, there was little commercial or military interest in concrete ship construction. The reason was that other shipbuilding methods were cheaper and less labor-intensive, and other kinds of ships were cheaper to operate. However, in 1942, after the U.S. entered [[World War II]], the U.S. military found that its contractors had steel shortages. Consequently, the U.S. government contracted [[Matthew McCloskey|McCloskey & Company]]<ref>[http://www.mareud.com/Ferro-Concrete/mccloskey_tampa1.html "McCloskey & Co., Hookers Point, Tampa, Florida, U.S.A."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070821230454/http://www.mareud.com/Ferro-Concrete/mccloskey_tampa1.html |date=2007-08-21 }}</ref> of [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]] to build 24 self-propelled concrete ships. Construction started in July 1943. The shipyard was at Hookers Point in [[Tampa, Florida]], and at its peak, it employed 6,000 workers.<ref name="builders">[http://www.coltoncompany.com/shipbldg/ussbldrs/wwii/merchantshipbuilders/concreteships.htm "Builders of Concrete Ships: WWII Construction Record"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070711235205/http://www.coltoncompany.com/shipbldg/ussbldrs/wwii/merchantshipbuilders/concreteships.htm |date=2007-07-11 }}</ref> The U.S. government also contracted with two companies in California for the construction of [[Concrete barge|concrete barge ships]].<ref name="builders"/> Barge ships were large vessels that lacked engines to propel them. Instead, they were towed by tugs.
In Europe,
Some barges were fitted with engines and used as mobile canteens and troop carriers. Some of these vessels survive as abandoned wrecks or sea defenses (against storm surges) in the [[River Thames|Thames Estuary]] including near [[Rainham Marshes Nature Reserve|Rainham Marshes]].<ref name=Rainham>{{cite web |title=Local History - Concrete Barges and The Diver |url=https://www.londonriversidebid.co.uk/news-and-events/local-history-concrete-barges-and-the-diver |website=www.londonriversidebid.co.uk |access-date=3 September 2022 |language=en}}</ref>) Two remain in civil use as [[Mooring (watercraft)|moorings]] at [[Westminster]].
In 1944 a concrete firm in California proposed a [[submarine]] shaped [[Cargo ship|freighter]] which they claimed could achieve speeds of 75 knots. The war ended any more research into the project. In retrospect many believe the claims were greatly overstated.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=mCYDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA80&dq=Popular+Science+1931+plane&hl=en&ei=b0IkTfqeCoKBnAfU-bWiAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CEcQ6AEwCTgo#v=onepage&q=Popular%20Science%201931%20plane&f=true "Concrete Liner"] ''Popular Science'', June 1944</ref>▼
One notable wartime FCB, previously beached at [[Canvey Island]], was partially removed in 2003 by the local sailing club, whose land it was on, for fear it was a "danger to children". Local historians disagreed with the club and were displeased with their actions.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hallmann |first1=Robert |title=Canvey's Concrete Barge |url=https://www.canveyisland.org/history-2/memories/the-1950s-and-beyond/canveys-concrete-barge-2 |website=CanveyIsland.org |access-date=4 September 2022 |language=en |date=20 October 2010}}</ref>
▲In 1944 a concrete firm in California proposed a [[submarine]] shaped [[Cargo ship|freighter]] which they claimed could achieve speeds of 75 knots. The war ended any more research into the project. In retrospect many believe the claims were greatly overstated.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=mCYDAAAAMBAJ
Concrete barges also served in the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific]] during 1944 and 1945.<ref>See, for example, {{USS|Quartz}}.</ref> From the [[Charleroi, Pennsylvania]], ''Mail'', February 5, 1945:
{{Quote|Largest unit of the Army's fleet is a BRL, (Barge, Refrigerated, Large) which is going to the South Pacific to serve fresh frozen foods
One concrete barge under tow by ''Jicarilla'' (ATF-104) was lost off [[Saipan]] during a [[typhoon]], and another barge damaged the [[Moreton Bay Pile Light]] in [[Brisbane]],<ref>{{cite loa|QLD|Moreton%20Bay|Moreton Bay Pile Light}}</ref> but the rest served admirably.<ref>Carter, Worrall Reed. ''Beans, Bullets, and Black Oil: The Story of Fleet Logistics Afloat in the Pacific during World War II''. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1953.[http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/BBBO/BBBO-10.html]</ref>
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==Today==
[[File:DSC01115 - Tall Ship Larinda.jpg|thumb|upright|The concrete-hulled [[schooner]] [[Larinda]] was launched in 1996.]]
Modern hobbyists also build ferrocement boats ({{not a typo|ferroboats}}),<ref>[http://www.ferroboats.com "The World of Ferro-Cement Boats."]</ref> as their construction methods do not require special tools, and the materials are comparatively cheap.
In Europe, especially the Netherlands, concrete is still used to build some of the barges on which [[houseboat]]s are built.<ref>[http://www.xs4all.nl/~jheeck/boot1eng.html "Amsterdam Houseboat Trivia"]</ref>
=== Remaining wartime ships ===
Surviving wartime concrete ships are no longer in use as ships. Several
==== North America ====
The largest collection is at [[Powell River, British Columbia|Powell River]], [[British Columbia]], {{coord|49.865238| -124.555821}}, where a lumber mill uses ten floating ferrocement ships as a breakwater
The [[Kiptopeke State Park|Kiptopeke]] Breakwater in [[Chesapeake Bay]], Virginia, {{coord|37.164267|-75.991402}}, is formed by nine sunken concrete ships built in World War II.<ref>[http://www.concreteships.org/ships/kiptopeke/
The wreckage of
The tanker
The
The
The vessel aground in the surf at Shipwreck Beach on the north shore of [[Lanai]], Hawaii is
The remains of the ''[[Col. J. E. Sawyer]]'' can be seen near the
The wreckage of the
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==== Europe ====
One of the few concrete ships built for but not completed in time to be used in World War I, the
A concrete barge, the ''Cretetree'', is beached in the harbour of the [[Scalpay, Outer Hebrides|Isle of Scalpay]] near [[Tarbert, Harris|Tarbert]], Harris, Scotland
The [[Purton Hulks]], a collection of vessels intentionally beached at [[Purton, Berkeley|Purton]] during the first half of the twentieth century as a method to prevent coastal erosion, includes eight ferro-concrete barges. {{coord|51.737178|-2.455798}}<ref name="purton">[http://www.friendsofpurton.org.uk "Friends of Purton"]</ref>{{nonspecific|reason=not helpful to cite the entire website|date=February 2023}}
A large collection of abandoned concrete barges are seen at
The wreckage of the
<gallery>
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File:Boat_graveyard_-_geograph.org.uk_-_103070.jpg|At [[Purton, Berkeley|Purton]]
File:Ferro-concrete_barges,_Rainham_waterfront_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1022440.jpg|At [[Rainham, London|Rainham]]
File:1109 Urlich Finsterwalde Wreck.jpg|''Ulrich Finsterwalder''
</gallery>
During the [[Axis occupation of Greece|German occupation of Greece]] (1942–1944) during World War II, the [[German Army (Wehrmacht)|German Army]] built 24 concrete cargo vessels for transporting goods to various [[Greek islands]], including [[Crete]]. These were constructed in the [[Perama]] shipbuilding area of [[Piraeus]]. After the war, many of the vessels were used as piers (e.g., in [[Rafina]], {{coord|38.022056|24.010368}}) and [[breakwater (structure)|breakwater]]s (e.g., in Agios Georgios, [[Methana]], {{coord|37.638340|23.394544}}).
Due to the need to deliver necessary raw materials (such as oil, weapons, ammunition, food and drugs) through mined river currents, [[Adolf Hitler]] ordered the production of 50 concrete ships for different purposes. Most were concrete barges made for oil transportation from Romania, and needed raw materials that were driven to the Baltic front. A smaller number of ships was intended for transporting food (specializing in cold storages). The most valuable ships were the specialized ship-hospitals, which evacuated seriously wounded and "important" soldiers to German hospitals along rivers.{{cn|date=February 2023}}
====
Several concrete ships were aground on the west beach of [[Iwo To]] (Iwo Jima) in Japan, {{coord|24.78238|141.293095}}, to make a breakwater by the US forces in 1945.<ref>[http://www.justinmuseum.com/jkjustin2/gibson4.html Beachead Cargo, Iwo Jima, Arvin S. Gibson, Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Transportation Corps, Hq. and Hq. Co., AGF, APO 86]</ref> Most of them were broken by
Japan built four concrete ships named [[Takechi Maru class|''Takechi Maru'' No. 1 to 4]] ({{lang|ja|武智丸}}) during World War II. After the war, two of them turned into a breakwater in [[Kure, Hiroshima]]
<gallery>
File:US Navy 070314-N-4124C-162 Dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) steams close to shore of Iwo Jima while on station to support the 62nd Commemoration of the Battle of Iwo Jima.jpg|At Iwo To
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==See also==
*[[Concrete canoe]]
*[[Capella (concrete ship)]]
*[[Concrete Ship]], former concrete hospital ship
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*[https://web.archive.org/web/20180930081300/http://viewfinder.english-heritage.org.uk/search/results.aspx?index=0&form=advanced&collection=Koos%20(concrete%20ships) Images of concrete vessels from the National Monuments Record ] Photographic record of the construction and launch of the ''Cretemanor'' at Preston and the Seacraft Concrete Co on the Mersey.
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=7igDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA73 "Pour in the Concrete and Take Out a Ship"], February 1919 ''[[Popular Science]]''
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=uicDAAAAMBAJ
{{Design 1100 tankers}}
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[[Category:Concrete]]
[[Category:Barges]]
[[Category:French inventions]]
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