J.A. Jones Construction Co. Brunswick
Brunswick, Georgia was the site of a shipyard that was constructed for the Brunswick Marine company, but the yard was eventually taken over by the J. A. Jones Construction Company in 1943. The facility was consigned to create Liberty ships and other vessels to help replace the crafts that had been damaged by German submarines during World War II.
The war had a devastating impact on the Maritime Merchant fleet, and the need to build new ships quickly became immense. To help out, the U.S. Maritime Commission initiated the creation of 16 new ship building facilities that would produce as many vessels as possible in a short period of time. The Brunswick facility began operating in 1943 to help out with this important mission. When it was determined that Brunswick Marine was not producing ships quickly enough, the contract was given to J.A. Jones Construction, who were expected to create new vessels at a much faster pace. They primarily built Liberty Ships, which were designed to be fast, easy to maneuver and better equipped to avoid enemy craft.
J.A. Jones set out to work rapidly and put together as many Liberty Ships as possible. As they built the cargo ships, the workers handled many different materials. One of them was a naturally occurring mineral called asbestos, which was primarily used for insulation but also served various other purposes. Many people spent large amounts of time around this mineral, and during this time they became subjected to inadvertently inhaling miniscule asbestos particles without even realizing it. Even if they had known they were breathing the material in, they may not have thought too much about it.
It wasn't until many years later that most people began to realize asbestos is toxic. Inhaling the substance can result in tissue damage, difficulty breathing and Mesothelioma, an incurable and often deadly type of cancer. The insulation materials that were placed on the ships contained large amounts of this hazardous substance, so a great number of shipyard workers were put in danger. At one point, more than 17,000 people worked at the Brunswick facility and all of them may have been exposed. They were not the only people who were potentially put in harms way, the crew who sailed on board the Merchant Marine vessels were faced with the same danger. This comprised thousands of individuals who spent large amounts of time in close proximity to the poisonous substance.
When WWII was over, there was no longer such a great need for ships to be built. The Brunswick facility was officially shut down as a shipyard for the benefit of the U.S. Maritime Commission.
Last modified: December 09, 2009.
