New Owners Take Charge

A yellow booklet cover featuring a drawing of a propeller with black printing advertising Hawboldt Industries Limited , as specialists in propellers with a price list for June 1st 1969.

Hawboldt industries Limited Price List, 1967

In 1966 the Hawboldt company was sold to Fred Porter Jr. Operating under the name of Hawboldt Industries Ltd., the company flourished, in large part due to continued growth in the fishing industry. Products for the fishery included shellfish handling equipment, trawl winches, monofilament reels and marine propellers.

Ad for Hawboldt products

Hawboldt Industries was going strong until the unimaginable happened. The Atlantic cod fishery collapsed in the 1980’s and strict quotas were imposed on several important groundfish species. A moratorium on cod fishing (1982) had serious repercussions for the marine services industry. Many companies, including Hawboldt’s, were in trouble.

Through the 1980s ownership changed four times and six different General Managers tried to keep the company in business through some very tough times. The turnaround occurred in 1989 when John Risley, Carl Potter, and Hugh Smith purchased the company from receivership. Operating as Hawboldt Industries (1989) Ltd., they developed a range of new products and became a global exporter of equipment for oceanographic research vessels and for the offshore oil and gas industry.

A group of four metal buildings that replaced the old foundry bulding foundry during the 1960s . Surrounding these buildings are four rounded roofed buildings that served as storage and as the foundry and welding areas for the company.

A newer plant with numerous buildings

A group of black and white photos showing a fishing fleet tied up at the wharf, a large round winch well over 15 feet high, a make and break engine and two smaller winches with platforms that would bolt them to the deck of the vessel. These are often referred to as gurdy haulers.

Some of the products manufactured

Chester Municipal Heritage Society

Hawboldt Gas Engines Ltd., 1919-1966 Hawboldt Industries in the 21st Century