GLMS 63 - R. A. Stearn Collection
MLA Citation
Tags
| Title | GLMS 63 - R. A. Stearn Collection |
|---|---|
| Subject | Business & Commerce |
| Introduction | The records of the R. A. Stearn, Incorporated collection were transferred to the Historical Collections of the Great Lakes in May 1986 by the company. The instrument of gift was signed in January 1989. Literary and property rights have been donated to the public and duplication is permitted for the purposes of preservation and scholarly research. Final processing was completed with a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities in June 1991 by Mark J. Barnes, Monica Manny, and A. J. Du Fresne. |
| Agency History | R. A. Stearn, Incorporated, was based in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and provided naval architectural services for shipbuilding companies. Stearn worked closely with the Leathem D. Smith Company of Sturgeon Bay on many collaborative projects regarding military vessels in World War II. During the war, Stearn was particularly active in designing cargo vessels, escort boats, frigates, gun boats, net tenders, submarine chasers and water tankers. Conversion of many of these vessels to peacetime purposes is documented in the Stearn Collection. |
| Scope and Content | As a window into ship building activities at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, the R. A. Stearn, Incorporated collection provides researchers with a view of the technology of ship design in the period 1940-1950. Stearn, a naval architect, participated in the design phase of vessels used for military purposes in World War II. Much of Stearn's work recorded in the collection was performed in conjunction with the Leathem D. Smith Shipbuilding Company of Sturgeon Bay. The conversion of many of these naval vessels to civilian usage following 1945 occupied the Stearn and Smith companies for many years. The files in the collection are heavily oriented toward construction projects. A small series of subject correspondence is present (one cubic foot out of the collection of eleven cubic feet). Projects are the most frequently discussed subjects. In larger quantity are the Job Files (three cubic feet) developed on such projects as the conversion of the SS ARROWWOOD from military use into a car ferry. The single largest file for a project is on the SS JAMES LAUGHLIN. Blueprints and drawings regarding the various classes of vessels (cargo, submarine chaser, escort, tanker, etc.) form the largest series in the collection (seven cubic feet). These items have been retained to provide an historical record of vessel construction. Photographic material (35 items) have been separated for cataloging purposes to the main Historical Collections of the Great Lakes photograph collection. Similarly, published items have been removed for separate cataloging. |
| Series Description | CORRESPONDENCE SUBJECT CORRESPONDENCE, A-Y PROJECT FILES JOB FILES, ALPHABETICAL, A-U JOB FILES - NUMERICAL BLUEPRINTS/DRAWINGS BLUEPRINTS/DRAWINGS |
| Inventory | Box 1: Correspondence, Job Files Folders 1-59. Subject Correspondence, A-Y, 1933, 1941-1947, 1961-1962 Box 2: Job Files--Numerical Folders 1. 1A, Police Boat for Turkey, February-March 1946 Box 3: Job Files, Numerical Folders 1-21. 125-125W, Christy Corporation projects, 1930, 1941-1958, 1961-1970 Box 4: Job Files, Numerical Folders 1-9. 131, SS JAMES LAUGHLIN, 1949-1950 Box 5: Blueprints/Drawings Folders 1-12. Class AN 78, 84, 87, net tenders, 1943-1945 Box 6: Blueprints/Drawings Folders 1. Vessel, J. A. CAMPBELL, 1947 Box 7: Blueprints/Drawings Folders 1-3. Class C1-M-AV1 & C1-ME-AV6 (cargo vessel), after S67 sequence of drawings Box 8: Blueprints/Drawings Folders 1-3. Class S2-S2-AQ1 (Twin Screw Escort Vessel), 1943-1945 Box 9: Blueprints/Drawings Folders 1-3. AN (net tender) vessels, 1943-1945 Box 10: Blueprints/Drawings Folders 1. Defoe Boat & Motor Works Vessels, 1941 Box 11: Blueprints/Drawings Folders 1-4. S2-S2-AQ1 (twin screw escort vessel), 1943-1945 |