J & W Dudgeon


J & W Dudgeon was a Victorian shipbuilding and engineering company based in Cubitt Town, London, founded by John and William Dudgeon.
John and William Dudgeon had established the Sun Iron Works in Millwall in the 1850s, and had a reputation for advanced marine engines. In 1862 they set up as shipbuilders at a yard to the south of Cubitt Town Pier. They initially specialised in building blockade runners for the American Civil War, at times employing up to 1500 men.
The yard, with of river frontage, stretched nearly inland to Manchester Road. The first ship built there was the 150-foot Flora, the first twin-screw steamer to cross the Atlantic Ocean. The firm survived the 1866 crash of Overend Gurney, with enough orders to take over the disused yard to the south in 1869. This gave a combined river frontage of.
In 1874 the company was severely damaged by the bungled launching of the large warship Independencia for the Brazilian government, repairs and refitting eventually being done by Samuda Brothers, just down the river. The ship was eventually acquired by the Royal Navy, as HMS Neptune. William Dudgeon died in 1875 and the yard closed. John Dudgeon was subsequently judged to be 'of unsound mind' and was admitted to an asylum in Edinburgh.
By 1882 the site had become an oil storage wharf, with tanks below ground level. By 1913 it had 27 oil storage tanks with a combined capacity of over 14,000 tons. It remained in this use until the 1960s, by which time it had nearly 100 tanks, some of 20,000 gallons.
In 1969 an explosion in an oil storage tank being demolished at the site killed five firemen.
The site was later developed for housing and is known as Compass Point.

Ships

ShipGRTYard NoDate of Launch
30525 September 1862
Annie3701863
Coya515August 1863
Apelles10306 May 1863
Dee3241863
Kate4771863
Vesta3701863
Ceres3741863
Don39023 May 1863
Hebe44991863
125931 October 1863
1863
5371864
Atalanta3801864
61426 March 1864
61323 April 1864
4811864
4321864
6141864
6801865
9021865
1504March 1865
3931865
6801865
66623 May 1864
1381865
9331866
16 June 1866
1701866
1031866
1986028 July 1866
1431867
1431867
122821 December 1867
14318 April 1867
1711869
1811869
5051869
1811869
1698June 1870
1698August 1870
169830 December 1869
1870
1870
290019 February 1870
1698754 April 1870
2811871
67013 October 1870
348030 September 1871
7181871
498July 1872
79128 May 1872
1051872
257020 April 1872
861November 1872
498September 1872
7301873
245March 1873
604April 1873
2781873
734June 1873
221310313 December 1872
276November 1874
233May 1874
3091874
65712 September 1874
54512131 January 1874
1874
36813115 May 1875
931010 September 1874