John H. Mathis Co. (Camden, N.J.)

Founded in 1870 by John H. Mathis and W.W. Reynolds, by the time of its 1913 incorporation, the John H. Mathis Company was an already established and well-represented shipbuilding firm in the maritime world. Located at Point and Erie Streets in Camden, New Jersey, the Mathis Company built and repaired yachts, river steamers, tugs, barges, car floats, ships and other varieties of floating vessels for private individuals and businesses as well as the Navy and Coast Guard. During World Wars I and II, a variety of ships were built, including minesweepers, transports, Coast Guard Cutters, and ferries. Of note, was the presidential yacht Sequoia, which was built by Mathis Yacht Building Company as a separate but allied venture at the Mathis shipyard in 1910. The Mathis Shipyard closed in 1961, but the yard was later used by the firm Camden Ship Repair.

Bibliography:

Weiss, George. America's Maritime Progress: A Review of the Redevelopment of the American Merchant Marine Together with Brief Biographies of Men and Companies Representative of the Shipping World . New York: The New York Marine News Company. 1920. p. 433.

"The John H. Mathis and Company Ship Yard" (website accessed on February 23, 2010: http://www.dvrbs.com/camden/camdennj-mathisshipyard.htm).

From the guide to the John H. Mathis Company records, 1919-1987, (Independence Seaport Museum, J. Welles Henderson Archives and Library)