South Shields, J P Rennoldson and Sons Shipyard

HER Number:
2439

District:
S Tyneside

Site Name:
South Shields, J P Rennoldson and Sons Shipyard

Place:
South Shields

Map Sheet:
NZ36NE

Class:
Maritime

Site Type: Broad:
Marine Construction Site

Site Type: Specific:
Shipyard

General Period:
Early Modern

Specific Period:
C19

Form of Evidence:
Documentary Evidence

Description:
This shipbuilding yard is shown on the 2nd edition Ordnance Survey plan to occupy part of the site of an earlier yard (HER ref. 2334), but it is not clear whether this represents continuity of use. This is probably the site of J.P. Rennoldson and Sons, established in 1863 at an existing timber building yard. From the 1870s they built iron ships and in 1890 the yard was rebuilt for paddle and screw tugs. By 1916 there were four berths, the largest 230 feet long. The yard was closed following financial failure in 1929. On the second edition Ordnance Survey plan of 1899 Rennoldsons’s Yard is the only yard occupied on the Lawe. The slipway is shown at the centre of the yard and an extensive building lay along the eastern boundary of the site, presumably Rennoldson’s Engine shop. The location of building berths is not indicated.

Easting:
3628

Northing:
6804

Grid Reference:
NZ36286804

Lats/Lons:

Sources:
<< HER 2439 >> 2nd edition, Ordnance Survey map, 1898, 6 inch scale, Durham, 4, NW N.L. Middlemiss, 1993, British Shipbuilding Yards, Vol 1: North East Coast p.137 The Archaeological Practice, 2002, Shipbuilding on Tyne and Wear - Prehistory to Present. Tyne & Wear Historic Environment Record; A.C. Flagg, 1979, The History of Shipbuilding in South Shields 1746-1946; Tyne and Wear Museums, 2003, River Drive, South Shields - Archaeological Assessment