Wilmington Shipyard focus of ECU Library professor’s book

GREENVILLE, NC  —   In his new book, “The Wilmington Shipyard: Welding a Fleet for Victory in World War II” (History Press, 2007), author Ralph Lee Scott examines the impact naval shipbuilding has had on this coastal city in North Carolina.

The book, released in July, focuses on the North Carolina Shipbuilding Company, which built some 243 ships that helped the Allied forces win the war.

“The vessels produced by the company played an important link in the ‘bridge of ships’ constructed by the U.S. Maritime Commission during World War II, to aid the Allies,” said Scott, a professor who curates the rare book collection at East Carolina University’s Joyner Library.

The impact the shipyard made transformed the city into a major industrial center that still stands tall today.

“Just as the vessels built by the yard were an important factor in the Allied victory, so the yard itself became a major shaper of Wilmington’s role as a major Atlantic coast port,” Scott said.

Scott holds degrees in history and library science from Columbia University and is a graduate of the East Carolina University program in Maritime History. His research interests are in the naval history of World War II with emphasis on Japanese naval technology.

He is working on three research projects: the Sinking of the SS Awa Maru on April 1, 1945, a U.S. Civil War articles on the CSS Virginia, and the role of the Tenth Regiment of Foot at the Battle of Saratoga in 1777.