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This is The North East | CommuniGate | READHEAD'S SHIPYARD

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John Readhead & Sons - Introduction

John Readhead & Sons - History

John Readhead and Sons - the People

Readhead's Ships

Readheads Ships, including photos

The Technical Offices & Head Office

The Engine Works & Drawing Office

Readhead's Timeline

Local Memories

The Steel Trades

The Outfitting Trades

Other trades

Royal Visits

More photo's

Newspaper & website publicity

The West Docks

The Readhead Family Tree

Readhead's Customers

Local Pubs, social scene, sports, Ashley House & Woodies sho

The Readhead Shipping Line

Readhead's Launch Photos

Photos

Photos 2

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

UNDER CONSTRUCTION 2

UNDER CONSTRUCTION 3

UNDER CONSTRUCTION 4

UNDER CONSTRUCTION 5

Message Board

Guestbook

Mail Form

The Joiners

A happy and relaxed looking Readheads employee (Michael?) - m.v.Hudson Light is in the background.

Email;-
My late father Bill Slater joined Readhead's in 1956 as deputy foreman joiner. He was promoted foreman joiner in the late sixties following the retirement of his predecessor Bill McHale. He was made redundant around 1975 by the new owners of the yard, Swan Hunter (Swine and Grunters as he referred to them).
My dad's particular talent lay in interior design, and he did all the design work for the officers' quarters in particular. He was very proud of his work on the Strick boats, whose officers' quarters were particularly sumptuous. I rememeber being taken as a child to see a Strick boat (they were always boats not ships) at South Shields as a child in the early sixties - don't ask me which one, it may have been the Siestan. I was also taken to see one at Wallsend Slipway a few years later.
I have a few photos of cabin interiors, and I also have a copy of the centenary book along with two pewter tankards from around that time.
Readheads were always a bit paternalistic and I don't think the pay was as good as it should have been. I suppose that was compensated for by the free goose we received each Christmas from the company. There seemed to be a spirit of loyalty about the place and pride in the job though.
Talking of spirits, there was always a goodly stock of whisky in our household at Christmas, courtesy of various suppliers.
Regards and thanks for a fascinating site.

The Riggers

In the 1960's Dennis Slater was Foreman Rigger. He was a smashing bloke. It was amazing to see him hanging on the end of a crane hook being lifted on to the ship, long before the Rules about Health and Safety.

The Electricians

Many thanks to Bill Just for this memory;-
I worked there as a maintenance Electrician from 1961 approx,till 1972.working all over the shipbuilding yard,and a few years on the welding plant, with Jimmy Todd, Trevor Musgrove, Ray Hewittson, Railton Moore, Ian McCann, Bob Spitiri, Ronnie Billson, Ronnie Winter, Jimmy Bass, to name just a few, my memories are of a family run business, lots of Fathers and sons,working there ,and great camirady as well,I well remember the Electricians Shop, in the Engine Works, and of Burt Robinson Foreman, and Ronnie Mitchell Chargehand,I allways say I really enjoyed working there, mind you not a lot of money was ever paid as wages there. My first ships I can remember where the two Cunard ships, Media,and Saxonia. Any one can contact me any time if they wish to do so. Regards Bill Just

Lifeboats

Readheads used to build their own lifeboats up to the beginning of the Second World War.
The photo shows a group of highly skilled employees working on a new boat.

Model-making

Each ship had a scale model made which would be housed in a glass case.
The photo shows a model maker at work in about 1900.

Joiners - fire surround manufacture

Fire surround being carefully constructed.

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