Jump to content

Joshua Hendy Iron Works

From Alfawiki
Joshua Hendy Iron Works
IndustryEngineering & Manufacturing
Founded1856
FounderJoshua Hendy
Defunct1947
SuccessorWestinghouse Electronic Systems
Headquarters
Sunnyvale, California
,
USA
ProductsMining equipment, marine engines
Number of employees
60 (1940); 11,500 (1945)

The Joshua Hendy Iron Works was a prominent American engineering firm operating from the mid-19th century until the late 1940s. Recognized as a pioneer in mining machinery, its products were integral to major undertakings such as the construction of the Panama Canal. While its portfolio evolved over time, the company is most notably remembered for its vital contributions to the United States' shipbuilding efforts during World War II.

Origins

The company was named after its founder, Joshua Hendy, who was born in Cornwall, England in 1822 and immigrated to the United States at age thirteen. Following personal loss and an early career as a blacksmith in Houston, Texas, Hendy relocated to San Francisco in 1849 amid the California Gold Rush. There, he established California’s inaugural redwood lumber mill before founding the Joshua Hendy Iron Works in San Francisco in 1856. The firm initially focused on supplying equipment tailored to placer miners and rapidly became a crucial provider within the mining sector.

Dominance in Mining Equipment

By the 1890s, Joshua Hendy Iron Works had solidified its status as a leading supplier to mining operations worldwide, delivering ore carts, crushers, stamp mills, ball mills, and various other essential machinery.

The company's technological advancements set benchmarks that endured into the 1970s. Notable innovations included the hydraulic giant monitor, tangential water wheel, Hendy ore concentrator, Challenge ore feeder, and hydraulic gravel elevator. Their large-scale hydraulic crushers played a key role in the excavation efforts of the Panama Canal.

Following Joshua Hendy’s passing in 1891, leadership transitioned to his nephews Samuel and John Hendy. The devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake destroyed their original facility, prompting relocation to Sunnyvale, California, where local authorities offered free land incentives. Samuel Hendy died soon after relocating; John Hendy then assumed presidency.

Contribution During World War I

In the course of World War I, Joshua Hendy Iron Works expanded into marine engine production. The company manufactured eleven triple expansion steam engines weighing 137 tons each for cargo vessels constructed by Western Pipe & Steel under contract with the U.S. Shipping Board. These engines measured approximately 24½ feet tall and demonstrated exceptional reliability, later influencing the design of mass-produced engines for US Liberty ships during World War II.

Developments Between Wars

During the early 1920s, Hendy’s hydraulic mining technology was employed in Seattle’s ambitious regrading project—one of history’s largest urban landscape modifications.

The challenges of the Great Depression tested the company’s resilience amid lackluster management. To maintain growth momentum, Joshua Hendy Iron Works diversified its production lines to include massive gates and valves for hydroelectric installations such as the Hoover Dam and Grand Coulee dam. Additionally, it manufactured crawler tractors, freight car wheel pullers, components for internal combustion engines, and street lamp posts—some of which remain present in San Francisco’s Chinatown today.

World War II

By the end of the 1930s, the company was struggling financially and had reduced its workforce to merely 60 employees. In 1940, entrepreneur Charles E. Moore gained a majority stake with financial support from the Six Companies. Moore secured essential contracts from the US Navy for torpedo tube mounts and twelve triple expansion marine steam engines, initiating a pivotal recovery for the firm.

The 1942 Emergency Shipbuilding Program triggered a sharp increase in demand for marine propulsion systems to equip Liberty ships. Since steam turbine production capacity was limited, most Liberty vessels relied on traditional reciprocating steam engines. Admiral Howard L. Vickery requested Moore to double the initial order of 12 engines; responding confidently, Moore ramped up production to 118 units.

Moore introduced sophisticated assembly line methods at Joshua Hendy Iron Works, standardizing components and allowing workers with less experience to contribute effectively, thereby boosting productivity. By 1943, manufacturing time per engine had decreased from 4,500 hours to 1,800 hours, while the workforce expanded dramatically to 11,500 employees.

By the conclusion of World War II, Joshua Hendy had supplied engines for 754 out of the 2,751 Liberty ships—accounting for approximately 28% of the market and representing the highest share nationwide. The company also delivered main engines for every Tacoma-class frigate constructed on the West Coast and produced 53 steam turbines and reduction gears for advanced Victory ships, reinforcing its dominant position in wartime marine engine production.

Postwar developments

In 1947, ownership of Joshua Hendy Iron Works transferred to Westinghouse Corporation. Following the war, the facility shifted focus to manufacturing military hardware such as missile launch and control systems for nuclear submarines, antiaircraft artillery, pressure hulls for submersibles, equipment for nuclear power plants, wind tunnel compressors rated at 216,000 horsepower, large-scale radio telescopes, diesel engines, and various electrical apparatus.

Westinghouse divested the plant in 1996, selling it to Northrop Grumman, which subsequently rebranded it as Northrop Grumman Marine Systems.

As a tribute to its heritage, mining machinery manufactured by Joshua Hendy is featured in the queue area of Disney World's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attraction.

Bibliography

External links

Retrieved from "https://www.alfawiki.org/index.php?title=Joshua_Hendy_Iron_Works&oldid=7071"