John Wigham Richardson (1837-1908) was born in Newcastle-On-Tyne to Quakers Edward Richardson and Jane Wigham. He attended Bootham School in York, famous for its high quality education based on Quaker values. John’s nephew, Charles Merz, pioneered electricity distribution, inventing the concept of synchronized grids now used world-wide.
The family business was leather tanning, however John’s interest was shipbuilding. He apprenticed first as a draftsman, then in steam tug construction. In 1860, at age 23, John started his own shipyard, Neptune Works (known widely as Wigham Richardson), with a loan from his father. His was one of the first shipyards to build steel ships. As a pacifist Quaker, John did not build vessels for the British Navy.
In true Quaker fashion, the shipyard’s steam engine also powered the neighbourhood’s electric lights. As well, John’s concern for his worker’s well-being led him to found the Worker’s Benevolent Trust, a precursor to trade unions. In his latter years, John left the Quaker faith and became an Anglican, probably because of pressure from his business partner, Swan Hunter, to bid on lucrative Admiralty contracts.
The first ship built was the 65 foot paddle steamer Victoria, used as a ferry carrying passengers, carts and livestock. As years past, Wigham Richardson’s shipbuilding experience grew with the size and complexity of the ships they built. At the same time, they built marine engines which they used in the ships they constructed and which they sold to other yards on the Tyne and across Europe.
Wigham Richardson went on to build all manner of ships. In 1888, after 28 years in business, they built a four-masted, twin-funnelled ship, 408 feet long, with accommodations for 1040 passengers. From 1895 to 1901 the yard was expanded to 18 acres, allowing the construction of 12 freighters.
The company’s timing was exquisite. They got in on the ground floor of steam-driven steel ship building at a time when there was a high demand for efficient marine travel for both cargo and passengers on coastal and trans-oceanic routes. As well, it was a time of mass migration and a desire by the wealthy to travel in style. Large ocean-going vessels with unimaginable amenities became both essential and avant garde. By the early 1900s, however, Wigham Richardson found itself unable to advance to the high-in-demand, lucrative liner contracts. It had the expertise, yet It simply could not raise the required capital alone.
The issue was resolved in 1903 when Wigham Richardson merged with Britain’s other large shipbuilder, Swan and Hunter. The merger was specifically designed to allow the companies to jointly bid on the contract to build the super liner Mauretania for the Cunard Line. Their bid was successful and the new company Swan Hunter Wigham Richardson went on to build many more ships. Between 1906 and 1912 Swan Hunter Wigham Richardson was in its prime, producing the largest tonnage of ships in the world. In 1907, the company’s output in tonnage accounted for 15% of the world’s shipping.
The Mauretania made its maiden voyage in 1907. It held the Atlantic Blue Riband speed record until 1929. During World War I Mauretania was used as a transport and hospital ship. Over her lifetime, she made 269 double crossings of the Atlantic in addition to her work in the war. She was much loved by her loyal patrons. Even today, she is the largest ship ever built on the Tyne.
On July 4, 1935, at 6:30am, she arrived in a half-gale at Rosyth, Scotland to be scrapped. A lone piper stood on the quayside playing a funeral lament. When her great engines were shut down, Mauretania gave a final deep shudder and fell silent. Twenty-eight years of hard service came to a close. The following Sunday, Mauretania was opened to the public for one last time. Twenty thousand people showed up.
