The Shipbuilding Industry in Belfast 9 



Shortly after these pioneer l)oats had been delivered, to be 

 precise, on Jan, 1st, 1862, Mr. Harland took his chief draughts- 

 man, Mr. Gustav "Wilhelm Wolfl", into partnership. From that 

 date begins the official existence of the present firm. 



While Mr. Harland was still in the very dawn of his career, 

 he had taken on two apprentices, both belonging to the immediate 

 neighbourhood of Belfast : in 1857 Mr. Walter Henry Wilson, 

 and in 1862 Mr. William James Pirrie. During the next few 

 years, the firm added steadily and quietly to its reputation, 

 building, among other boats, a scries of fine sailing shi])s for 

 Messrs. Brocklebank, and several boats for the Bibby Line. In 

 those days, and indeed for many years after, the firm were famous 

 for their sailing ships. It is now 23 years since the last sailing 

 ship was built on the Island, and I think we may quite safely 

 prophesy that never again Avill a ' windjammer " leave the ways 

 of "H. & W." But I am getting ahead of my dates. 



The advent of the White Star Line was the* next notable 

 event, in many ways the most notable, in the firm's history. The 

 White Star Line had begun as a fleet of clipper sailing ships 

 trading to Australia : in 1867 the line was bought by Mr. T. H. 

 Ismay of Liverpool, and a couple of years later, he, with his friend 

 Mr. Imrie, decided to make an enormous change in the character 

 of the line. They decided to abandon sails for steam, and to 

 make a bold bid for a share in the already famous traffic l)etween 

 Liverpool and New York. They broke through other conventions 

 of the time : they chose to set aside all the firms which, up till 

 then, had built for this particular ti'ade : they went, instead, to a 

 young firm, in Ireland (of all places in the world to choose in the 

 year 1869), and they demanded a practically new type of boat. 

 They got it. Of course, as we have seen, the first " Oceayiic" 

 launched 1871, was really a development from the first boats that 

 Harland had built ; but she was a very big development. She 

 was very much larger, 420 ft. between perpendiculars, and 

 even slimmer in proportion, having a beam of only 40 ft. 9 in. 

 She was much the most beautiful steamer that had ever been 



