J.L. Thompson
| Private | |
| Industry | Shipbuilding |
| Fate | Merged with William Doxford & Sons |
| Successor | Doxford and Sunderland Shipbuilding and Engineering |
| Founded | 1846 |
| Defunct | 1961 |
| Headquarters | River Wear, Sunderland |
J.L. Thompson and Sons was a shipyard on the River Wear, Sunderland, which produced ships from the mid-18th century until the 1980s. The world-famous Liberty Ship was among the designs to be created, produced and manufactured at the yard's base at North Sands.
The founder of J.L. Thompson and Sons was Robert Thompson, the son of a Master Mariner, who was born in 1797. As a boy he had enjoyed a busy life on the River Wear, playing among the keels, and at 18 he started work as an apprentice shipwright. He spent his evenings, however, learning draughtsmanship on his kitchen floor and, by the age of 22, had built several craft in a berth below the Lambton Drops.
Robert’s first association with North Sands came in 1820, when he joined forces with seven business associates to build a 12 keel vessel in just six weeks. But it took him another 17 years to launch his own company, going into business with his three sons – all apprenticed as shipwrights – at Washington Stays. Unfortunately, the depression which gripped Britain at this time quickly caused the firm’s collapse, and the sons were forced to take positions at other firms. Down, but not out, Robert decided to fight back. His firm, Robert Thompson & Sons, was launched once more on 13 February 1846. It was to prove a huge success.
North Sands became the new home of the firm and, with a staff of just eight, they built a brig of 12 keels – Pearl – in 11 weeks – with work starting at 4am each day. Pearl brought in a £300 profit and helped establish the yard’s reputation for good shipbuilding. The yard’s first ship, Vencedora, soon followed. "The launch of Vencedora was the occasion of great rejoicing," states a centenary brochure published by Thompsons in 1946. "The apprentices followed the ancient custom and went through the ceremony of ducking and plunging into the water as soon as the ship was safely launched. Carpenters' allowances at this time were a pint of beer in the forenoon for caulking, a pint for the keel seam and three pints of beer on the launching day."
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