Union Iron Works Historic District - San Francisco, CA
Posted by: 
saopaulo1
N 37° 45.642 W 122° 23.087
10S E 554189 N 4179442
The Union Iron Works Historic District in San Francisco, CA.
Waymark Code: WMKC5Z
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 03/17/2014
Views: 4
"he Union Iron Works Historic District, while retaining the essence of its original design, typifies subsequent changes in shipyard design up to the end of World War II in 1945.
The early history of Union Iron Works (UIW) coincides with the shift from wood to iron shipbuilding. By opening the first steel shipyard on the West Coast in 1884, UIW established a national steel hull shipbuilding industry.
Over the next three decades, the shipyard played an integral role in the United States government's efforts to increase naval resources and bolster the nation's image as an international military power. By World War I, the yard stood at the center of the shipbuilding industry on the West Coast. A crew of mostly skilled laborers produced dozens of warships and submarines that resulted in the United States' overwhelming success in World War I.
Between the World Wars, the shipyard's ability to build and repair all ships afloat kept it profitable. As World War II approached, UIW participated in the unprecedented military build-up. During World War II, ship repair and naval contracts made a significant contribution to the war.
Over the decades, UIW maintained and used many of the older buildings. The result is a unique collection of buildings from all periods of the steel shipbuilding industry in the United States.
Source: Adapted from the NRHP nomination." (
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