Courtesy Photo | This photo features employees in Norfolk Naval Shipyard's sheetmetal shop in Building...... read more read more
As we continue exploring the locations where the work gets done here at America’s Shipyard, or as I like to say our "big box stores," this month we look at the how the Sheetmetal Shop, Building 234, came to be.
The sheetmetal function can first trace its roots back to the north end of our shipyard at the location of what was then called the Outside Shipfitter’s Shed, basically across the road from today’s Hammerhead Crane. After our building of both the USS Texas and USS Raleigh, this location transitions from construction to maintenance support in the early 20th century. Over time this shed was enclosed and renamed Sheet Metal Shop, Building 55.
According to a 1928 Norfolk Navy Yard document, the following description of Building 55 is found: "In volume and character of work this is among the most important shops in the Navy Yard. The Norfolk Navy Yard manufactures most of the metal furniture now used instead of wooden furniture on board ships of the Navy, and in this shop can be seen, in addition to the routine sheet metal work of the shop, the fabrication of lockers, tables, and other such metal accessories from the raw material to the final spraying of paint on the completed product."
It is interesting to note that as early as 1910, our station map also lists Building 56 located between Dry Dock 2 and the recently expanded Dry Dock 3 as a Sheetmetal Shop likewise. As it is today, it was also important then to have tooling and equipment available close to where the ships were undergoing repairs.
As the United States warships grew larger and more complex, it became apparent that an even larger sheetmetal shop would be required while the shipyard was ever expanding southward. One might ask where might the monies come from to construct a new facility? Well in July 1933, with the passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act, there was initiated a naval construction program. From this and succeeding programs, Norfolk Navy Yard was allocated a total of nine destroyers, which were built and launched during the years of 1934 to 1939.
A new large and modern shop could now finally be constructed; it would contain both Sheetmetal and Electrical Shop functions. Building 234 was erected by private contract beginning August 25, 1934 with the funds coming from a regular Navy Department appropriation. Building 234 was completed in the one year later on October 3, 1935 at a cost of $956,750.00, this being our first major new shop building since 1920.
Building 234 now enjoys expanded capabilities in order to serve the nation as one of the Navy’s central locations for manufacture of metal shipboard furniture such as tables, chairs, lockers and various galley and bunkroom fixtures. Also, a rarely known fact is on the very upper floor of the new facility we manufactured and welded together metal casings for 100-pound practice bombs supporting the Bureau of Ordnance in the year of 1937.
Throughout World War II and beyond the shop floor was full of large metal breaks and punches. Overhead bridge cranes moved the work product down the high bay to the different work centers where skilled craftsmen could work their magic transforming sheets of flat metal into the components needed to support the fleet. Today a number of these original machines have been removed, yet some remain to continue our capacity to accomplish certain age-old tasks yet we are no longer a massive construction yard as repair work tasks have drastically changed in the 21st century.
I would be remiss if I did not feature an image of our people in this article because it is indeed those special craftsmen that handle, layout then measure twice in order to bend or punch once with pinpoint accuracy because we work in a field of precision. Navy warships will carry out their missions with metals formed by our workforce never knowing these individuals by their name yet our craftsmen know they contributed to the cause under the roof of Building 234 because - "history matters."
| Date Taken: | 07.01.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 07.01.2025 10:32 |
| Story ID: | 501991 |
| Location: | PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 36 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Our Yard History: The Sheetmetal Shop, Building 234, by Marcus Robbins, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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