Dredges Built in the U.S. Since WWII ~ Shipbuilding History

Dredges Built in the U.S. Since WWII

Most recent update: May 9, 2020.

Until 1960, most of the dredging of U.S. ports and waterways was done by the Corps of Engineers, using their own equipment. In the early 1960s, however, the Merchant Marine Act was modified to allow private-sector contractors to take up the load: in addition, the Jones Act was modified to include dredge spoil. As a result, all the new private-sector dredges had to be US-built as well as US-operated. These changes resulted in all but one of the Corps' dredges being retired and there was a boom in private-sector dredge construction in the 1970s and 80s. The table below lists all the large dredges built since WWII by year built.

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Builder	Location		O/N	Name	Customer	Type	Capacity (CY)	GT	LOA	Price ($M)	Delivered	Notes
Corps of Engineers Dredges (13)
Ingalls SB	Pascagoula MS	500		Comber	USACE	TSHD	2,300	6,000	352		1947	scrapped
Ingalls SB	Pascagoula MS	501		Gerig	USACE	TSHD	2,300	6,000	352		1947	scrapped 1991
Ingalls SB	Pascagoula MS	502		Langfitt	USACE	TSHD	2,300	6,000	352		1947	scrapped
Ingalls SB	Pascagoula MS	503		Biddle	USACE	TSHD	2,300	6,000	352		1947	scrapped
Sun Ship	Chester PA	565		Essayons	USACE	TSHD	6,100	12,000	525		1950	scrapped
Avondale	Avondale LA	904		Markham	USACE	TSHD	2,070	5,400	339		1960	reefed 1994
Bethlehem Steel	Sparrows Point MD	4608		McFarland	USACE	TSHD	3,140	6,000	300	15	1967
Norshipco	Norfolk VA	168		Yaquina	USACE	TSHD	1,020	1,960	193	14	1981
Avondale	Avondale LA	2322		Wheeler	USACE	TSHD	8,256	12,000	381	67	1982
Bath Iron Works	Bath ME	402		Essayons	USACE	TSHD	6,000	12,000	350	65	1982
Halter Marine	Moss Point MS	1247		Hurley	USACE	DP			350		1983
LeTourneau Ind.	Vickburg MS	229		Goetz	USACE	CSD			200		2005
Conrad SY	Morgan City LA	896		Murden	USACE	TSHD			150		2012
Commercial Dredges (40)
Tampa Marine	Tampa FL		Export	Roosevelt	Mining Equipment Co.			3,800			1947	scrapped
Tampa Marine	Tampa FL		Export	Stuyvesant	Mining Equipment Co.			3,800			1947	scrapped
Gulfport SB	Port Arthur TX	341	Export	Ciudad de Barranquilla	Govt. of Colombia			3,715			1949	scrapped 1984
Todd Houston	Houston TX	245	283416	Alaska	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		1,433	220		1960
American Marine	New Orleans LA		290028	Pontchartrain	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		656	170		1962
Avondale	Avondale LA	1019	292779	California	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		1,109	190		1962
NASSCO	San Diego CA	332	506446	Sensibar Bros.	Sensibar Brothers	CSD		1,109	190		1962	later Florida
Avondale	Avondale LA	1033	292613	Fritz Jahncke	Jahncke Services	CSD		1,300	186		1963	later G. D. Morgan
Todd Houston	Houston TX	567	532555	Ezra Sensibar	Sensibar Brothers	TSHD	16,000	10,300	500		1971	later Long Island, scrapped
Bean, C. F.	Belle Chasse LA	30	552707	Jim Bean	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		2,349	263		1973	later Carolina
Avondale	Avondale LA	2269	560225	G. L. 54	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		1,100	185		1973	inactive
Avondale	Avondale LA	2302	580274	Illinois	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		1,400	220		1977
Southern Sbldg.	Slidell LA	117	583706	Manhattan Island	Ballast Nedam Dredging	TSHD	3,600	2,400	281	14	1977	(Marshall I.)
Zidell Marine	Portland OR	607	592239	Westport	Manson Construction Co.	TSHD	1,800	851	180		1978
Southern Sbldg.	Slidell LA	119	606519	sugar Island	Ballast Nedam Dredging	TSHD	3,600	2,400	281	14	1979	(Marshall I.)
Bergeron	Braithwaite LA	1123	627368	Texas	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		3,479	305		1979
Twin-City Dock	Saint Paul MN	552	630008	Atchafalaya	Gulf Coast Dredging	TSHD	1,300	850	195		1980
Southern Sbldg.	Slidell LA	120	625328	Dodge Island	Ballast Nedam Dredging	TSHD	3,600	2,400	281	16	1980
Twin-City Dock	Saint Paul MN	668	643740	Mermentau	Gulf Coast Dredging	TSHD	1,300	850	195		1981	(Colombia)
Avondale	Avondale LA	2320	630823	Eagle 1	Bean Dredging	TSHD	6,600	5,700	316	38	1981	later Terrapin Island
Southern Sbldg.	Slidell LA	123	639291	Padre Island	Ballast Nedam Dredging	TSHD	3,600	2,400	281	18	1981
Avondale	Avondale LA	2332	648540	Stuyvesant	Stuyvesant Dredging	TSHD	11,200	7,110	368	30	1982
Barnett Marine	New Orleans LA	98	654551	Meridian	Bean-Horizon, Inc.	CSD		1,693	113		1982	later E. W. Ellefsen
Moss Point Marine	Escatawpa MS	25	644880	Beachbuilder	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		3,005	275		1982	later Ohio
Nichols Bros.	Freeland WA	67	658434	Newport	Manson Construction	CSD		2,500	262		1983
Southern Sbldg.	Slidell LA	126	664129	Northerly Island	Ballast Nedam Dredging	TSHD	2,160	2,400	281	25	1983	(Marshall I.)
Twin-City Dock	Saint Paul MN	885	685093	Ouachita	Gulf Coast Dredging	TSHD	4,150	3,400	295	25	1985	later B. E. Lindholm
McDermott SB	Amelia LA	276	908078	Atlantic American	Atlantic American Dredging	TSHD	4,000	2,700	292	14	1987	later R. N. Weeks
Gunderson	Portland OR	44	1048828	Bayport	Manson Construction Co.	TSHD	5,000	2,151	300		1996
Gunderson	Portland OR	47	1073113	Mr. Manson II	Manson Construction Co.	CSD		1,694	215		1997	later H. R. Morris
Great Lakes Dredge	Chicago IL	17	1142982	Arizona	Great Lakes Dredge & Dock	CSD		646	220		1997
Bay Shipbuilding	Sturgeon Bay WI	744	1077537	New York	Great Lakes Dredge	BD		1,485	200		1999
Bay Shipbuilding	Sturgeon Bay WI	746	1117966	Liberty Island	Great Lakes Dredge	TSHD	6,540	5,300	315	52	2002
Bay Shipbuilding	Sturgeon Bay WI	747	1102692	James B	Lake Michigan Contractors	CSD		1,679	247		2002	later Charleston
Alabama	Mobile AL	100	1180182	Glenn Edwards	Manson Construction	TSHD	9,180	9,500	711		2006
Eastern Shipbuilding	Panama City FL	253	1256673	Ellis Island	Great Lakes Dredge	TSHD		9,976	374		2017
Eastern Shipbuilding	Panama City FL	256	1266740	Magdalen	Weeks Marine	TSHD		7,581	326		2017
Corn Island SY	Lamar IN	323	1266767	Weeks 321	Weeks Marine	TSHD		4,366	340		2018
C & C Marine	Houma LA	307	1278460	J. S. Chatry	Weeks Marine	TSHD		4,811	310		2019
Eastern Shipbuilding	Panama City FL	258		R. B. Weeks	Weeks Marine	TSHD		7,581	326		2023