Vancouver Shipyard

The Kaiser Company (Vancouver, Washington), commonly known as the Vancouver Shipyard, was an emergency shipyard constructed along the Columbia River in Vancouver, Washington, to help meet the production demands of the U.S. Maritime Commission in World War II. The shipyard was one of three Kaiser Shipyards in the Pacific Northwest, along with the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation and the Swan Island Shipyard across the Columbia in Portland, Oregon. The Vancouver yard began production in early 1942 and totaled nearly 200 acres (81 ha).^[1] It produced vessels of five different types, with Casablanca-class escort carriers being its biggest production line.^[2][3]

Escort carriers at the Vancouver Shipyard in 1943

The USS Gambier Bay CVE-73, an escort carrier that was made in the Vancouver Shipyard

With an initial payroll of 38,000 workers, the nearby housing development of Vanport was constructed to house the workforce that was introduced to the area.^[1]

The Shipyards were eventually sold to Gilmore Steel for $3.25 million.^[3]