View source for Commercial Iron Works

{{Short description|Shipbuilder in Portland, Oregon}}
{{Infobox Company
 | name             = Commercial Iron Works
 | logo             = 
 | type             = 
 | genre            = 
 | foundation       = 1916
 | defunct           = 1946
 | founder          = William T. Casey, Otto J. Hoak and Robert Boogs
 | location_city    = [[Portland, Oregon]]
 | location_country = U.S.
 | location         = 
 | locations        = 
 | area_served      = 
 | key_people       = 
 | industry         = [[Manufacturing]] & [[shipbuilding]]
 | products         = Small [[warship]]s, iron and steel products
 | services         = 
 | revenue          = 
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 | net_income       = 
 | assets           = 
 | equity           = 
 | owner            = 
 | num_employees    = 
 | parent           = 
 | divisions        = 
 | subsid           = 
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 | homepage         = 
 | footnotes        = 
 | intl             = 
}}
[[Image:Commercial Iron Works progress photo - LCSL-26.jpg|300px|thumb|LCS ([[Landing Craft Support]]) under construction at Commercial Iron Works, 21 July 1944]]
'''Commercial Iron Works''' was a manufacturing firm in [[Portland, Oregon]], United States. Established in 1916, the company is best remembered today for its contribution to America's [[Emergency Shipbuilding Program]] during [[World War II]].

The company was founded in November 1916, by William T. Casey, Otto J. Hoak and Robert Boogs, on a {{convert|30|acre|m2|sing=on}} site on the [[Willamette River]] just south of the [[Ross Island Bridge]]. Little is known about the company's early years, but it appears to have served diverse markets. For example, it placed a bid for the manufacture of 200 fire hydrants for the City of Portland in 1927,<ref>[http://www.firehydrant.org/pictures/pdx_08.html Portland Oregon Fire Hydrants], City of Portland Water Bureau Archives.</ref> and supplied the high pressure outlet gates for the [[Unity Dam]] on the [[Burnt River (Oregon)|Burnt River]] near [[Baker, Oregon]] in 1937.<ref>[http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/html/burntriv.html Burnt River Project] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706181025/http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/html/burntriv.html |date=2008-07-06 }} - Bureau of Reclamation History Program, [[Denver, Colorado]].</ref> The company is recorded as having built only one ship prior to World War II - a small 140-ton tender for the [[United States Coast Guard|US Coast Guard]] in 1935.  The CIW built the 25-ton tugboat Constance J for the Crown Willamette Paper Company.  The Constance J was still in service as an active workboat as late as 2017 under the name Diane.

Commercial Iron Works established a shipyard on the [[Ross Island (Oregon)|Ross Island]] site in the early 1940s, which turned out close to 200 small warships during the war, including [[net laying ship|net layer]]s, [[minelayer]]s, [[submarine chaser]]s, and [[Landing Craft Infantry|LCI]] and [[Landing Craft Support|LCS]] [[landing craft]]. It also outfitted larger ships built at other yards with armaments.

Following the war, the shipyard was acquired in 1946 by another local firm, the [[Zidell Machinery and Supply Company]], which was eventually to transform the yard into America's largest [[shipbreaking]] operation.

Built for World War II:<ref>[http://shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/small/commercial.htm shipbuildinghistory.com Commercial Iron Works ]</ref>

* 4 of 29 {{sclass|Cherokee|tugboat|0}} fleet tugs
** {{USS|Tawasa|AT-92|3}} ... {{USS|Zuni|AT-95|3}}
* 43 of 343 {{sclass|PC-461|submarine chaser}}s
* 7 of 18 {{sclass|Adroit|minesweeper}}s
*** {{USS|Adroit|AM-82|3}} ... {{USS|Dash|AM-88|3}}
* 56 of M [[Landing Craft Infantry]]
** LCI(L)-725 ... LCI(L)-780
* 4 of 32 {{sclass|Aloe|net laying ship}}s
** {{USS|Catalpa|AN-10|3}} ... {{USS|Buckeye|AN-13|3}}
* 6 of 15 {{sclass|Cohoes|net laying ship}}s
** {{USS|Cohoes|AN-78|3}} ... {{USS|Nahant|AN-83|3}}
* 52 of 130 [[Landing Craft Support]]
** LCS-26 ... LCS-47, LCS-79 ... LCS-108
* tugs YTM-769 ... YTM-780

* completion of
** AP-92, AP-93, AP-96 ([[Western Pipe and Steel Company]] hulls)
** AK-156, AK-158, AP-133 (Kaiser No. 4 hulls)
** 3 of 45 {{sclass|Bogue|escort carrier}}s ([[Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation|Todd Tacoma]] hulls)
*** {{USS|Bastian|CVE-37|3}} (HMS ''Trumpeter'')
*** {{USS|Perdido|CVE-47|3}} (HMS ''Trouncer'')
*** {{USS|St. Simon|CVE-51|3}} (HMS ''Arbiter'')
** 3 of 19 {{sclass|Commencement Bay|escort carrier}}s ([[Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation|Todd Tacoma]] hulls)
*** {{USS|Salerno Bay|CVE-110|3}}
*** {{USS|Badoeng Strait|CVE-116|3}}
*** {{USS|Rabaul|CVE-121|3}}

==Footnotes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080312063633/http://www.shipbuildinghistory.com/history/shipyards/5small/commercial.htm Commercial Iron Works World War II construction record].
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110723022052/http://www.deq.state.or.us/lq/cu/nwr/zidell/StaffReport.pdf Zidell Waterfront Property] - Staff Report, DEQ Voluntary Cleanup Program (PDF file 3.4 Mbytes).

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[[Category:Defunct shipbuilding companies of the United States]]
[[Category:Companies based in Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:History of transportation in Oregon]]
[[Category:Shipbuilding companies of Oregon]]
[[Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1916]]
[[Category:1916 establishments in Oregon]]
[[Category:1946 disestablishments in Oregon]]
[[Category:Defunct manufacturing companies based in Oregon]]