Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Moran Brothers Company Collection, 1893-1939
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Moran Brothers Company (Seattle, Wash.)
- Title
- Moran Brothers Company Collection
- Dates
- 1893-1939 (inclusive)18931939
- Quantity
- 7 boxes , (3 linear feet)
- Collection Number
- 1995.49
- Summary
- Photographs, clippings, and other materials documenting the work of the Moran Brothers Company, a Seattle shipbuilder, between 1893 and 1906.
- Repository
-
Museum of History & Industry, Sophie Frye Bass Library
P.O. Box 80816
Seattle, WA
98108
Telephone: 2063241126 x102
library@mohai.org - Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open to the public by appointment.
- Languages
- English.
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Historical NoteReturn to Top
After working on ships for a number of years, Robert, Sherman, and Frank Moran established Moran Bros. Marine and Sawmill Machinery Co. in 1882. The company became Moran Bros. Co. (ship and engine builders) in 1890. In 1898, the firm built -- in the record time of only four months -- a fleet of 12 steamers and 10 barges, and delivered them on the Yukon River to carry food to the miners. The firm also built many large steel and wood vessels, including the U.S. battleship NEBRASKA. Robert Moran served as mayor of Seattle from 1888 to 1890, overseeing both the response to the Great Fire and the development of the Cedar River water system.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
This collection documents the work of the Moran Brothers Company between 1893 and 1906. A large proportion of the collection is photographs, including images of vessels, ship components, machines, construction processes, facilities, and workers. Non-photographic materials include clippings, brochures, and correspondence. Much of the material relates to the NEBRASKA, including photographs, clippings, correspondence, and invitations and programs from the launch.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
View selections from the collection in digital format by clicking on the camera icons in the inventory below.
Restrictions on Use
The Museum of History & Industry is the owner of the materials in the Sophie Frye Bass Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from MOHAI before any reproduction use. The museum does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.
Preferred Citation
Moran Brothers Company Collection, Museum of History & Industry, Seattle
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Location of Collection
15b.1.8-10Acquisition Information
Found in collection. Apparently an artificial collection assembled from various donations by Moran family members. Many of the photographs and photo albums are from a 1972 donation by Betty Burns, Robert Moran's granddaughter.
Related Materials
The Betty Burns Papers on Robert Moran (2000.87) and the Betty Burns Papers on the Moran Brothers Company (1972.5439) contain additional materials relating to Robert Moran and the Moran Brothers Company.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series 1: Photographs Return to Top
Photographs of vessels, machinery, workers, and facilities, some in scrapbooks. Item-level photograph inventory available at repository.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box | ||
| 1 | 1995.49.1-1995.49.56: USS Nebraska under construction at Moran Brothers shipyard, Seattle, March 1904 Engines for the USS Nebraska at Moran Brothers shipyard, Seattle, circa 1903
Identified vessels, including steamers, tugs, schooners, and the battleship USS NEBRASKA. Box also
includes copy negatives and photograph inventory.
|
1896-1905 |
| 2 | 1995.49.57-1995.49.150: Robert Moran posing near a propeller at Moran Brothers shipyard, Seattle, circa 1899 Moran Brothers employee operating a compressed air chipping gun, Seattle, circa 1902 Construction of USS Nebraska's main deck at Moran Brothers shipyard, Seattle, 1904
Identified and unidentified vessels, as well as ship construction. Includes USS NEBRASKA (also
invitation to launching), SS WILLAMETTE, and other steamers, torpedo boats, and tugs, as well as the wreck of the SS
UMATILLA.
|
1896-1902 |
| 3 | 1995.49.151-1995.49.243: Photographs
Unidentified vessels, facilities (exterior and interior shots), and machines and parts. Includes dry
docks, shop buildings, and some shots of workers.
|
1893-1906 |
| 4 | 1995.49.244-1995.49.275: Portrait of Robert Moran, circa 1900 Moran Brothers employees working at lumber yard, Seattle, circa 1900 Machine shop at Moran Brothers shipyard, Seattle, July 4, 1902
Machines and parts, people (including striking workers), vessels, and facilities. Also includes album
containing images of the USS NEBRASKA along with people and facilities, and a set of commemorative photos of the
construction of the NEBRASKA.
|
1894-1906 |
| 5 | 1995.49.276-1995.49.277: Photographs
Scrapbook with images of Yukon River steamboat building, loose photos from scrapbook, copy prints and
negatives from Moran albums, and photo of NEBRASKA main propelling engines.
|
1896-1906 |
Series 2: Manuscript material Return to Top
Correspondence, articles, clippings, and ephemera. Also includes visitors' register logging visitors to the company from 1896-1902.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box | ||
| 6 | Miscellaneous manuscripts: |
1895-1924 |
"Salving of the Steamship WILLAMETTE" |
||
Letter from Wm. B. Mershon & Co. re: building carriage |
||
Carriage blueprints from Wm. B. Mershon & Co. |
||
Standard lists and standard dimensions |
||
American Machinist article on centrifugal
pump |
||
Moran Bros. Co. history |
||
Address by Robert Moran to 50th Jubilee Meeting of Pioneers Association
|
||
Invitations to NEBRASKA launching |
||
Correspondence re: KOMO radio program about NEBRASKA |
||
Moran Bros. brochure |
||
Robert Moran biographical sketch |
||
NEBRASKA souvenir booklet |
||
Employee notice and invitation to launch of USS GOLDEN GATE
|
||
Shop orders book |
||
Seattle Sunday Times article re: laying
of keel of NEBRASKA |
||
NEBRASKA launch program, NEBRASKA furnace markings and firing schedules
|
||
Robert Moran correspondence |
||
Seattle Star special edition re: launch
of NEBRASKA |
||
Correspondence re: NEBRASKA bid |
||
| 7 | Visitor's register |
1896-1902 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Mayors -- Washington (State) -- Seattle
- Shipbuilding -- Washington (State) -- Seattle -- Photographs
Personal Names
- Moran, Robert, 1857-1943
Form or Genre Terms
- Photographic prints
Finding aid prepared by Julie Kerssen
2006
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
