Castle's Shipbreaking Co

April 1928.

of Baltic Wharf, Millbank, Westminster, shipbreakers, timber merchants and barge owners.

Also at Long's Wharf, Woolwich, and Charlton.

of Grosvenor Road, Westminster

of Plymouth

c.1835 According to a 1933 report, the firm started ship breaking on the Thames around this time.

1838 An important vessel was scrapped - the Temeraire (this was done by the firm of Beatsons). Nearly a 100 years later, 2 figures of Atlas and other items made from timber from the Temeraire were still on display in Castle's showrooms at Vauxhall Bridge.

1858 John Beatson having died, William Philip Beech occupied the former Beatson premises at Surrey Canal Wharf.

1861 William Philip Beech joined the Castles in Henry Castle and Sons

1865 Henry Castle died

1866 Paddlewheel steamer Hermes, 6 guns, was towed to the breakers yard of Castle and Beach (sic) at Deptford

1869 William Philip Beech left the partnership of Henry Castle and Sons, and W. P. Beech, carrying on business as Admiralty Contractors, and Ship Breakers, at Charlton, in the county of Kent.

c.1872 The last wooden ship broken up in the Surrey Canal Wharf yard was the Queen

1875 Beech left the Surrey Canal Wharf, Woolwich, and retired

1877 Dissolution of the Partnership between Sidney Nash Castle and Abercrombie Castle, carrying on business at Baltic Wharf, Millbank, in the county of Middlesex, and at Woolwich, in the county of Kent, as Shipbreakers, Timber Merchants, Barge Builders, Barge Owners, and Lightermen, under the style or firm of Henry Castle and Sons. Business continued by Sidney Nash Castle

1877 of Rotherhithe, within a short distance of the Surrey Canal entrance to the Grand Surrey Commercial Docks

1894 Business transferred to a company

1902 "Castle's Ship Breaking Yard, known as Long's Wharf, adjoining the Warspite Wharf, and close to Messrs. Siemens Bros. Telegraph Works and the Woolwich Dockyard, having a frontage to the River Thames of 228 feet, a similar frontage to Harrington-road, and embracing an area of over an acre, having brick and tiled offices, dwelling house, range of four stores, &c., thereon. Let to Messrs. Henry Castle and Sons Limited on lease for 21 years from Lady Day, 1898, at the moderate rent of £350 per annum"

1904 Henry Castle and Sons Ltd was wound up.

As an interim measure, J. B. Garnham, metals merchants took responsibility for purchasing ships and keeping the wharf operational.

Around 1904 William G. Ball of Plymouth joined the business to assist the company with the problems encountered in breaking up the Ajax.

1906 Castles Shipbreaking Ltd was incorporated to take-over the Assets, Liabilities and Business of Henry Castle & Sons Limited as a going concern.

1908 Awarded a Silver Banksian Medal for their teak furniture at the Royal Horticultural Society's summer show

1913/4 Acquisition of Baltic Wharf and Bridge Wharf by Holloway Brothers, on the basis that Castles would carry out the repairs and improvements needed, which were completed by 1914. Holloway Brothers agreed to a 30 year lease of part of the site (160 Grosvenor Road Millbank) and to erect a showroom and offices for the sole use of Castles.

1913 Philip Castle stated the firm had broken up nearly 1000 ships since 1838; he would support Douglas Owen's proposal about preservation of British naval memorials with an offer of 20 figureheads that were too large for his new museum

1913 Mr Douglas Owen's public proposal about preservation of British naval memorials, supported by Mr Philip Castle (of Castle Shipbreaking Co), was recognised with pleasure by the Navy League

1914 the firm donated the figurehead from HMS Orion, which had taken part in the battle of Trafalgar (sic), to the museum of the Royal United Services Institute; the firm was erecting a showroom to display some of the relics it owned but large items (of which there were around 20), such as the Orion figurehead, would have had to stay outdoors

1914 Several of the figureheads from ships the firm had broken up found homes in naval establishments and other institutions.

1919 Advertised bundles of firewood for sale

c.1920 Leased premises in the Cattedown area of Plymouth, at Corporation Wharf and also at Passage Wharf and later, probably in 1921, at Ocean Quay.

1920 Seventeen surplus (metal) Naval ships were purchased, mostly cruisers and destroyers, for breaking purposes. Some of these vessels were resold.

1921 Two further metal ships were acquired and also the 4th Rate 50 gun wooden ship the Vernon

1924 Sidney Castle junior formed the Plymouth and Devonport Shipbreaking Co Ltd. As well as dismantling at least one ship, the company was involved in salvage work on the Barnstaple and Lynton Railway.

c.1930 Plymouth and Devonport Shipbreaking Co. was in liquidation.

1931 William Ball set up Shipbreakers Ltd at the Cattedown site.

1933 Castles Shipbreaking was in liquidation; the business and assets were taken over by Shipbreakers Ltd and a short time afterwards Shipbreakers Ltd changed its name to Castles Shipbreaking.

1933 The Arethusa, the last naval vessel to go into battle under sail, was towed from her moorings at Greenhithe to Castle's yard at Woolwich. W. G. Ball was managing director of the company. The firm was in the process of moving its shipbreaking business to Plymouth where several Royal Navy vessels were already being worked on.

After 1933 the Company struggled on with its garden furniture business but was faced with marketing a largely seasonal product in a period of deep recession in the economy. Also started tendering for Admiralty contracts for the manufacture of ammunition boxes but these were at such competitive prices that they would not have fully covered the Company’s overheads.

1942 Company was placed in Receivership.

Timber Construction (Plymouth) Ltd, was formed to carry on the residual business and continued into the 21st century.

See Also

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• [2] History of Castles
• [3] Final years of Castle's