Maine Atlas, the Office of the Maine Secretary of State
A black and white historical photograph showing a wide view of a busy shipyard with industrial buildings, cranes, and a large ship hull under construction inside a scaffolding framework.

Bath Iron Works

Bath Iron Works, ca. 1900. Photo: Maine Historical Society.

Established in 1826, Bath Iron Works (BIW) began its long life on the Kennebec River in Bath as the C. Bartlett Foundry, a brass and iron foundry. Following his service with the 20th Maine Regiment, Brigadier General Thomas Hyde took over in 1865r Twenty years later, Hyde incorporated the foundry and other marine interests as Bath Iron Works, Limited. With the acquisition of Gass Marine Iron Works in 1888 he expanded the business to include steel shipbuilding. The first ship off the production line in 1890 was the passenger vessel Cottage City, built for the Maine Steamship Company. In 1893 the first US Navy ship built by BIW, the USS Machias, a patrol gunboat, was launched.

In the 130+ years since that first vessel, Bath Iron Works has been responsible for building more than 260 military vessels (such as destroyers) for the United States Navy, and more than 160 private and commercial ships. This included the building of 274 liberty ships at two South Portland-built BIW shipyards in World War II. In 1995, BIW became a subsidiary of General Dynamics, and remains a major United States shipyard.

 

Bath Iron Works
An oil painting depicting a vibrant shipyard scene with two large ships under construction, enveloped in complex scaffolding, while numerous workers populate the docks below.
This oil painting of Bath Iron Works by Carroll Thayer Berry shows the construction of two large naval vessels in the shipyard, 1943. Photo: Maine Historical Society.
A historic black and white photograph of a shipyard along a river, featuring a large open-ended steel-framed shelter on the right and several ship hulls undergoing construction to the left.
The construction of Bath Iron Works. Photo: Penobscot Marine Museum.
A black and white vintage photograph showing a large masted steamship docked alongside a snow-covered wooden pier where a crowd of people has gathered.
Steam yacht APHRODITE tied up at BIW. She was commissioned into the U.S. Navy as USS APHRODITE in 1917 and served as a convoy escort. Decommissioned in 1919 and was sunk in the Mediterranean by German aircraft in 1941. Photo: Penobscot Marine Museum.
A historic black and white photograph of a white naval gunboat with decorative scrollwork on its stern, floating in a calm river near a dock.
USS MACHIAS (Gunboat No. 5, later PG-5) is moored at Baht Iron Works in an advanced state of completion. People, probably yard workers, stand on deck, and another person appears to look through the port of a gun casemate. Photo: Penobscot Marine Museum.
A black and white photograph capturing two military vessels at a shipyard facility, one resting on a dry dock slipway and the other afloat nearby, with a label at the bottom reading "BATH IRON WORKS CORP'N".
Photo of coast patrol boats THETIS and AURORA, built by BIW for the U. S. Coast Guard. Photo: Penobscot Marine Museum.
A dramatic black and white photograph taken from a low angle, showing a large crowd of sailors in white dress uniforms looking up at the towering, massive bow of a ship at a shipyard.
U.S. Navy's USS FARRAGUT, built at Bath Iron Works and launched in 2005, the fifth Navy ship named for Admiral David Farragut (1801-1870). Photo: Penobscot Marine Museum.

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