Old Shipyard's Glory Put on Display

Artifacts and photos detailing the once thriving local shipbuilding industry are on display at the New York Shipbuilding Corporation exhibit aboard the Battleship New Jersey Museum. The New York Shipbuilding Corporation -- named for its intended location on Staten Island -- established a high reputation for itself by building the newest, high-speed warships from the beginning of the 20th century into the 60s.

New York Ship grew to become the largest shipyard in the world by 1917, and built nearby Yorkship Village -- a self contained neighborhood in Camden now known as Fairview -- to cater to a growing work force.

Seeing the slide-rules, eye glasses and scribing tools on display sparks questions about the people of the period. Who used these things? Who wore these things? Women, that's who. With the men away, women were running the country. "Rosie the Riveter" -- Norman Rockwell's brawny female icon of WWII -- could be seen in the face of every laboring woman, supporting the American people while keeping her family fed. While New York Shipbuilding Corporation was contracted to build battleships and destroyers, it also built steamers, tankers, carfloats and cargo ships. New York Ship produced over 670 naval and merchant ships in total, and left behind a legacy of mass production techniques and marine engineering. The South Jersey Port Corporation now occupies the piers, shipways and drydocks formerly owned by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation. Source: SJNewsco