Maritime Kensington: Shipwright Dynasties of Philadelphia

Discover the Shipbuilding Dynasties that Built Philadelphia’s Maritime Industry

The waterfront of Kensington and Fishtown in Philadelphia attracted a host of innovative and hardworking shipwrights from America’s earliest days. As fleets transitioned from wooden-hulled ships of sail to iron steamships, the tradesmen of Kensington’s shipwright dynasties were at the forefront of the global shipbuilding industry throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Kensington’s shipyards saw the birth of screw propulsion, revolutionizing the speed and reliability of ships forever afterward. The Industrial Revolution in Philadelphia, which earned the city its motto ＂Workshop of the World,＂ fostered innovation and invention in the local maritime industry. For this reason, Kensington shipwrights commanded worldwide respect.

Gretchen M. Bell is a writer and researcher in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Gretchen is an active member of the Philadelphia Ship Preservation Guild and the Society for Industrial Archaeology’s local Oliver Evans Chapter. Gretchen has worked with numerous maritime organizations in research assistance and continues to work to preserve the maritime history of Philadelphia.