Dobson Walker

The yard was founded in 1883 by William Dobson (1832 to 1907).

William Dobson was born in Fife and had worked for Barclay, Curle shipbuilders on the Clyde, until 1863. He then moved to Tyneside where he became a Manager at Charles Mitchell’s Yard at Low Walker. After 20 years there, he moved into adjacent premises on his own account.

The location of the Dobson Yard was off Wincomblee Road, between Mitchell's Low Walker Yard and the land which would become the site of the Walker Naval Yard. Dobson's yard had three berths for vessels up to 10,000 tons and a smaller berth for craft such as tugs and hopper barges.

The firm was prepared to build a wide variety of river and coastal vessels. A range of unusual specialist ships and Russian contracts indicates that Dobson retained, or exploited, contacts and experience gained during his years working for Mitchell.

Many of the smaller vessels were built in "kit form", a common practice in the days of riveted construction. The vessel would be assembled in the yard with the frames and plates held together by bolts. All the rivet holes would be positioned and drilled but not riveted. The vessel would then be taken apart and all the components shipped in the hold of a cargo vessel to a yard overseas where it would be re-assembled and finally riveted.

The Yard averaged 6 ships built per year during its lifetime and had a reputation of being compact and well run.

Local owners supported them, notably Hall Bros of Newcastle. Dobson’s first ship had been for Hall Bros the BOSPHOROUS of 2490 tons and three of their last four ships built were for the same owners: ROYAL CROWN, CADUCEUS and WHITE CREST of 1927/28.

After his death at Jesmond in 1907, the firm stayed in family hands being run by his three sons HJ, William G and Douglas Dobson, until its demise in the late 1920’s.

World War 1 production was a mix of Goverment and private orders. A number of "X craft" were built for the Admiralty and three standard "War B" and three "War C" types for the Shipping Controller.

The Yard had suffered like others over the years, but survived until the post-war period, when the orders dried up in the early 1920’s, building only three ships in 1921 and four in 1926-28.

In July 1928, Armstrong-Whitworth acquired the firm and by December of that year had laid down two new keels on the ‘old’ Dobson berths.

However in September 1934, the final act came when the owners, now Vickers-Armstrong, sold their 3 subsidiary yards, the former Dobson, Mitchell and Tyne Iron sites. They were sold to the notorious ‘National Shipbuilders Security’ group, as part of the ‘rationalisation' campaign to reduce the shipbuilding over-capacity of the UK in those hungry pre-war days.

The plant and machinery at the Dobson Yard were auctioned off by the National Shipbuilders Security Ltd in 1935.

Only five Tyneside shipyards had survived that era, until the outbreak of war in 1939.

The war briefly revived the Mitchell/Dobson sites when the Shipbuilding Corporation, a wartime creation, modernised some of the berths and built some standard ships and utility craft there, but it was basically shut down again in 1945.

In the present day, the Dobson site is occupied thereabouts by the works of Lloyds British Test Company, on Wincomblee Road at Walker.

The above is an extract from Tyne Shipyard Biographies, copyright of Ron French.