Pollock, James, Sons & Co Ltd

The records are mainly loose files, 1930s to 1970. They consist of estimates for jobs, 1939 to 1960; 'costs of vessels' books, 1885 to 1912; ledgers, 1916 to 1951; sales journals, 1931 to 1941, 1947 to 1951; purchase journal, 1938 to 1941; cash books, 1936 to 1951; wages summaries, 1943 to 1950; accident book, 1943 to 1946; insurance claims, 1942 to 1948; standard specifications, 1939 to 1960; enquiries files, 1948 to 1970; Walter Pollock's personal letter-book, 1938 to 1943. In addition, there is a quantity of miscellaneous sales and illustrative material. (Section 3: PLK/: 100ft: 30m)

Ships' Plans: A comprehensive collection of drawings for nearly all the ships designed or built by Pollocks between 1875 and 1970.

Please contact archive staff for more information about ordering from this collection.

Administrative / biographical background
After an adventurous early career, James Pollock (1838-1910) set up on his own in London as a consulting engineer and naval architect in 1875. In 1900 he went into partnership with his son, Walter (1873-1947), forming a private company, and in 1902 this was turned into a limited liability company. The firm concentrated on the design of specialized small craft and in the early part of this century a considerable business with South America was built up. The shipyard at Faversham was established in 1915. During the war the yard constructed flat-bottomed barges for use as landing craft and it continued to specialise in the building of barges, lighters, tugs, coasters and small tankers. It was also a pioneer in diesel propulsion and in the construction of concrete ships. The Second World War saw more work for the Navy. The yard was closed in 1970. See Walter Pollock, 'The Pollock's as engineers' (privately published, 1939); also 'James Pollock, Sons & Co. Ltd.', Ship and Boat Builder, May 1955.