A guide to the James A. Lufkin photograph collection, circa 1935-1953
Processed by: L. Bianchi, March 2013.
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
2013
Building E, Fort Mason
San Francisco, CA 94123
Phone: 415-561-7030
Fax: 415-556-3540
SAFR_Historic_Documents@nps.gov
URL: http://www.nps.gov/safr
A Guide to the James A. Lufkin photograph collection
P80-056
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, National Park Service2013, National Park Service
Title: James A. Lufkin photograph collection
Date: circa 1935-1953
Identifier/Call Number: P80-056 (SAFR 23361)
Collector:
Lufkin, James A.
Physical Description:
21 items.
Repository:
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, Historic Documents Department
Building E, Fort Mason
San Francisco, CA 94123
Abstract: The James A. Lufkin photograph collection, circa 1935-1953, (SAFR 23361, P80-056) is primarily comprised of black-and-white
photographs showing scenes at Moore Dry Dock Company in Oakland, California. The collection has been processed to the collection
level and is open for use.
Physical Location: San Francisco Maritime NHP, Historic Documents Department
Language(s):
In English.
This collection is open for use unless otherwise noted.
Some material may be copyrighted or restricted. It is the researcher's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other
case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections.
Description Notes:
Dates refer to when the original photograph was taken. The collection may contain copies of photographic prints that were
made later than when the original photograph was taken.
The descriptions in this collection guide were compiled using the best available sources of information. Such sources include
the creator's annotations or descriptions, collection accession files, primary and secondary source material and subject matter
experts. While every effort was made to provide accurate information, in the event that you find any errors in this guide
please contact the reference staff in order for us to evaulate and make corrections to this guide.
Please cite the title and collection number in any correspondence with our staff.
[Item description], [Location within collection organization identified by Collection Number/Series Number/File Unit Number/Item
Number], P80-056 (SAFR 23361), James A. Lufkin photograph collection, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
SAFR-00001
GOGA-00789
This collection was a gift to the National Maritime Museum, a unit of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, from James
A. Lufkin on July 9, 1980.
Little biographical information could be located on the donor, James Alan Lufkin. He was born in 1923 in Humboldt County,
California, and died in 2009 in Sonoma, California. He had also been a resident of Piedmont, California. He is the author
of the 1968 University of California, Berkeley, thesis titled "A History of the California State Textbook Adoption Program."
His connection to Moore Dry Dock Company is unknown.
SAFR-00001 is a blanket accession that was transferred from the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) to the San Francisco
Maritime National Historical Park in September 1988. GGNRA had previously acquired the collection from the San Francisco Maritime
Museum when it became a unit of the National Park Service in 1977.
GOGA-00789 was transferred from the J. Porter Shaw Library to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) in February
1985.
Historical or Biographical Note
Moore & Scott Iron Works (later known as Moore Shipbuilding Company, followed by Moore Dry Dock Company):
Moore & Scott Iron Works was founded in the Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco, California in 1905 by Robert S. Moore,
his younger brother Joseph A. Moore, and John Thomas Scott. John T. Scott was the nephew of Henry T. Scott and Irving M. Scott,
the owners of the nearby Union Iron Works, where John had apprenticed (Knave).
As Moore & Scott Iron Works' business grew, they needed to find larger facilities. In 1909, the company moved to the foot
of Adeline Street in Oakland, California, with the purchase of W.A. Boole and Son shipyard. Scott eventually sold his interests
in Moore & Scott Iron Works to the Moore family in 1917 (Moore, 10; Important shipbuilding deal, 50; The Moore & Scott Iron
Works Becomes the Moore Shipbuilding Company, 370). However, it is unclear when the company officially adopted the name Moore
Shipbuilding Company. James R. Moore (10) states that the name change occurred in January 1918, and a March 1918 Pacific Marine
Review article discusses the renamed Moore Shipbuilding Company (Expansion of the Moore Shipbuilding Company, 77); however,
readers will still find references to Moore & Scott Iron Works in later 1918 issues of Pacific Marine Review and International
Marine Engineering.
During World War I, business boomed with the increased demand for new ships. As shipbuilding demands declined after the war,
Moore Shipbuilding Company shifted their focus to ship repairs and steel production. To reflect this shift, the company changed
their name to Moore Dry Dock Company in 1922, but World War II brought them back into the shipbuilding business.
"Moore Dry Dock Co. was the largest shipbuilding yard on the Estuary. During the shipbuilding booms of the war years, Moore
Dry Dock employed thousands of workers and built over 200 ships between 1909 and 1961. Besides construction of ships, Moore
Dry Dock provided structural steel for many notable buildings and the caissons for the San Francisco Bay Bridge. Moore Dry
Dock also built both the Park St. Bridge (1934-1935) and the High St. Bridge (1938-1939) between Oakland and Alameda" (Cooper).
After World War II, the company once again faced a decrease in demand for their products and services and increased competition.
Moore Dry Dock Company ceased operations in 1961 and was sold to Flug and Strassler, which was subsequently sold to Schnitzer
Steel, an American steel manufacturing company headquartered in Portland, Oregon.
Written by L. Bianchi and Amy Croft, 2013.
- Cooper, Deborah. 1996. "Moore Dry Dock Co. Becomes Schnitzer Steel." From the "Walk Along the Water, Oakland's Dynamic Waterfront" exhibition at the Oakland Museum of California, October 5, 1996-May 4, 1997. Retrieved on February 4, 2013 from http://www.waterfrontaction.org/history/50.htm
- Moore, James R. The Story of Moore Dry Dock Company: A Picture History. Sausalito, Calif.: Windgate Press, 1994.
- San Francisco Maritime staff. Front matter in finding aid for Moore Dry Dock Company ships plans collection (SAFR 20962, HDC 1065).
- Unknown author. "Knave" section of the Oakland Tribune. Sunday December 3, 1961.
- Unknown author. "The Moore Shipbuilding Company." Pacific Marine Review. Seattle, Wash: Pacific Marine Review Pub. Co, 1920 July. Page 59.Unknown author. "Expansion of the Moore Shipbuilding Company." Pacific Marine Review, March 1918. Page 77.
- Unknown author. "Important shipbuilding deal." Pacific Marine Review, July 1917. Page 50.
- Unknown author. "The Moore & Scott Iron Works Becomes the Moore Shipbuilding Company." International Marine Engineering, August 1917. Page 370.
The James A. Lufkin photograph collection, circa 1935-1953, (SAFR 23361, P80-056) is primarily comprised of black-and-white
photographs showing scenes at Moore Dry Dock Company in Oakland, California. The collection has been processed to the collection
level and is open for use.
Contains photographs of various machinery, people and vessels related to Moore Dry Dock Company, circa 1935-1953. Locations
are most likely at Moore Dry Dock Company in Oakland, California, unless otherwise noted. There are 21 black-and-white photographic
images in 14 physical forms (some of the images are on the same sheet). Known photographers are Thomas M. Livingstone and
Gabriel Moulin, though most photographers are unidentified.
Item list:
Item 01: Three men at work, circa 1940. 1 black-and-white photographic print, 5 x 6.5 in.
Items 02-03: Dredge part, possibly a bucket, with men standing alongside, as seen inside a building. 2 black-and white photographic
prints, 35mm. Both images are on the same 1.25 x 3.5 in. sheet.
Items 04-06: Dredge part, possibly a bucket, as seen inside a building. 3 black-and white photographic prints, 35mm. The three
images are on same 1.25 x 4.75 in. sheet.
Items 07-09: Dredge cutter head, as seen outdoors not yet installed. 3 black-and white photographic prints, 35mm. The three
images are on same 1.25 x 4.75 in. sheet.
Items 10-12: Dredge cutter head, as seen outdoors not yet installed. 3 black-and white photographic prints, 35mm. The three
images are on same 1.25 x 4.75 in. sheet.
Item 13: Cutter head of SAN JOAQUIN (dredge), viewed straight on, March 20, 1937. 1 black-and-white photographic print, 8
x 10 in.
Item 14: Cutter head of SAN JOAQUIN (dredge), viewed at an angle, March 20, 1937. 1 black-and-white photographic print, 8
x 10 in.
Item 15: Machinery, possibly a gear, circa 1940. A large ring is being held up by a cable in a shop. A man is partly visible
in the background through the center of the ring. A William Sellers & Company vertical boring mill is in the background. 1
black-and-white photographic print, 8 x 10 in.
Item 16: Floating drydock pontoon launching, circa 1940. The vessel is dressed with flags. 1 black-and-white photographic
print, 8 x 10 in.
Item 17: Wood truss, unidentified, circa 1940. 1 black-and-white photographic print, 8 x 10 in.
Item 18: Steamship, unidentified, underway possibly on San Francisco Bay, starboard bow view. 1 black-and-white photographic
print, 8 x 10 in.
Item 19: Steamship, unidentified, underway possibly on San Francisco Bay, starboard view. 1 black-and-white photographic print,
8 x 10 in.
Item 20: Group of fifty-two men and women gathered for a farewell party to bachelorhood given for Mr. James Rolph Moore by
the office employees of the Moore Dry Dock Company, on April 11, 1936. Location unidentified. Mr. Moore married Miss Frances
Burgess on April 25, 1936. Photographed by Gabriel Moulin, photographer's number 4270. 1 black-and-white photographic print,
8 x 10 in.
Item 21: Group of thirty-eight men gathered for Norman Grant's retirement dinner at the Trophy Room of Helnick's Restaurant,
Oakland, California, on June 30, 1953. Photographed by Thomas M. Livingstone, photographer's number M-313. 1 black-and-white
photographic print, 8 x 10 in.
Not arranged due to the small size of the collection.
Related photograph and media collections:
Moore Dry Dock Company photograph albums, circa 1914-1951. SFMNHP, (SAFR 15212, P79-071a). Consists of (31) photograph albums
containing prints illustrating the activities of the Moore Dry Dock Company.
Moore Dry Dock Company photographs, 1878-1933, bulk 1917-1926. SFMNHP, ( SAFR 23368, P79-083a). Comprised mainly of photographs
taken by Gabriel Moulin Studios documenting the construction of steamships at Moore & Scott Iron Works, Moore Shipbuilding
Company, and Moore Dry Dock Company in San Francisco and Oakland, California.
Related manuscript collections:
Moore Dry Dock Company ships plans, 1882-1962. SFMNHP, (SAFR 20962, HDC 1065). Consists of naval architecture and marine engineering
drawings from the Moore Dry Dock Company.
Researchers should note that there are other books and collections with materials related to Moore Dry Dock Company in the
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park. They can search the Park's web catalog for more information.
- This material is located at San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Dredges
Dry Docks
Marine machinery
Shipyards
Moore Dry Dock Company
Oakland (Calif.)
Oakland Estuary (Calif.)
San Francisco Bay Area (Calif.)
Black-and-white prints (photographs)
Gelatin silver prints