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Hans Hansen Welding Company - GLMS 56

Introduction | Organizational History | Scope and Content | Series Description | Inventory

Introduction

This five cubic foot collection is available for research use at the Historical Collections of the Great Lakes. Literary and property rights are dedicated to the public. Photocopying is permitted for conservation and research purposes.

Organizational History

The Hans Hansen Welding Company was founded by Hansen in Toledo, Ohio in 1922. Hansen's welding services were greatly in demand during his tenure as company owner. Shipping companies routinely maintained accounts with Hansen due to rapid and thorough completion of repairs to lake vessels. Services were offered to the railroad companies located in toledo bringing an additional revenue source to the company. Hans Hansen died in 1968 but his company continues in Toledo and is nearing its 75th anniversary.

Current owner Anthony Lamantia began working for the company in 1956 before assuming his current position. Lamantia operates with a workforce that fluctuates in size during the year. When vessels are docked in the winter, employment rises to accommodate orders for repairs. Such practices reflect a common employment pattern in the Great Lakes region for similar companies. Construction of vessels under 150 feet in length supplements repair work for the staff.

Now named H. Hansen Industries, Hans Hansen's brainchild of the 1920s survived the Great Depression, built vessels during World War II, and provides service today for municipal fleets of cars and trucks. A large and diverse clientele relies on Hansen Industries today. Hansen staff shorten masts on vessels that need to sail under bridges over Toledo's Maumee River, repair railroad cars, and weld industrial machinery in local factories. Hans Hansen's dream continues in the form of a company now viewed as an institution on Toledo's waterfront.

Scope and Content

This five cubic foot collection reflects the activities of the Hans Hansen Welding Company in Toledo, Ohio through nearly four decades of vessel repair and construction projects, from 1942 to 1979. These project files document the work performed by a company representing marine repair businesses in the Great Lakes region. Hansen employees made their living providing repair and refitting services for vessels in the large Great Lakes freighting fleets. Company profits were supplemented by construction of small utility vessels and tugs.

The project files compiled in this collection reflect the daily activities involved in marine construction and repair services. Most files contain blueprint copies of the plans pertinent to the project. Financial material in the form of invoices and cost sheets gives detailed information on the expenses involved in marine repair work.

Photographs of the Hans Hansen work site on Summit Street in Toledo are located in the port file on Toledo.

Series Description

SUBJECT FILE

PROJECT FILES, A-W
1942-1979
Boxes 1-5
Arranged alphabetically by project name
Series contains records of vessel construction and repair projects from the Hans Hansen Welding Company in Toledo, Ohio. Files may include architectural plans in blueprint form, records of expenses for the project, correspondence, notes, and product sales literature.

Inventory

Box 1: Project Files, A-D, 1953-1972

Folders

  1. ALASKA, February 1960
  2. AMERICAN STEAMSHIP COMPANY, 1960-1972
  3. FRANK ARMSTRONG, 1954
  4. JULIUS H. BARNES, 1956
  5. BAY STATE, 1957
  6. W. T. BRAGG, 1963-1966
  7. CANADIANA, May 1958
  8. CHERRY (USCG), 1956
  9. CITY OF TOLEDO, 1958
  10. CLAMSHELL DREDGE, 1953-1955
  11. CLEPRO MARINE CORPORATION, 1972
  12. CONSUMERS POWER, 1957-1958
  13. CRAPO, 1963
  14. CRAPO, 1963
  15. CREW BOAT, 1956
  16. H. G. DALTON, 1954
  17. Damaged stability calculations, n.d.
  18. DANA, ca. 1957
  19. DAYTON STOKER, 1956
  20. DAYTON STOKER, details 1957
  21. DAYTON STOKER, details, Job D1700, 1955-1958
  22. DAYTON STOKER, details, Job D1700, 1955-1958
  23. DAYTON STOKER, details, Job D1700, 1955-1958
  24. DAYTON STOKER, Plans, 1956-1957
  25. Delaware River Dredges, 1959
  26. Detroit River Light, 1963
  27. Dewey Boat Fire, 1967-1969
  28. DREDGE M9, 1954-1956
  29. J. F. DURSTON, n.d.

Box 2: Project Files, E-L, 1942-1977

Folders

  1. EIGHTH SEA, 1958
  2. Electroweld Co., 1956
  3. JOHN D. EMERY, 1956
  4. Erie Ordnance, 1961-1962
  5. HARRY L. FINDLAY, 1956-1957
  6. FIRE TUG, 1953-1958
  7. BENSON FORD, 1969
  8. FOURTH COAST, 1948-1958
  9. FOURTH COAST, 1948-1958
  10. FRONTIER, plans, 1955
  11. Furnace Dimension Forms, n.d.
  12. GARDEN STATE, 1955-1956
  13. GARDEN STATE, 1955-1956
  14. PAUL N. GILLON, JR. 1962
  15. Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Co., n.d.
  16. Harvard Business School Fund, 1962-1963
  17. CHARLES S. HEBARD, 1956
  18. Hoisting Winch, 1958
  19. HULL 71, 1960
  20. HULL 76, 1962
  21. HULL 104, 1968
  22. Huron Cement Co., 1961-1962
  23. Induction Heating Equipment, 1956
  24. KAHLENBERG BROS., 1957-1958
  25. KAW, 1954-1957
  26. JOHN A. KLING, 1942-1967
  27. JOHN A. KLING, 1942-1967
  28. JOHN A. KLING, 1942-1967
  29. JOHN A. KLING, 1942-1967
  30. KUHLMAN BARGE, 1976-1977
  31. Kuhlman Company, 1969
  32. LA LIBERTE, 1961
  33. LEONARD LEVINE, 1958, 1963
  34. LEONARD LEVINE, 1958, 1963
  35. Ken Leroy's Boat, 1957
  36. LESLIE ANN, 1959

Box 3: Project Files, M, 1946-1974

Folders

1-18. MACKINAC ISLANDER, 1946-1958
19-20. Marine Operators, 1957
21. C. H. McCULLOUGH, 1958
22. MIKE, 1956
23. Miscellaneous, 1955
24-25. MUSKY II, 1960, 1974

Box 4: Project Files, N-R, 1950-1968

Folders

  1. National Gypsum Co., 1955, 1960
  2. National Gypsum Co., 1955, 1960
  3. Ohio Department of Natural Resources Barge, 1955
  4. Ohio Plate Glass Co., 1958
  5. Philadelphia Police Boat, 1958
  6. Pittsburgh Steamship Co., 1950-1957
  7. Presque Isle Dock, 1959
  8. THOMAS R. PRESTON, 1955-1956
  9. HARRY S. PRICE, 1955-1956
  10. HARRY S. PRICE, 1955-1956
  11. PRICE BROS., 1957-1961
  12. PRICE BROS., 1957-1961
  13. PRICE BROS., 1957-1961
  14. PRICE BROS., 1957-1961
  15. PRICE BROS., 1957-1961
  16. CLEMENS A. REISS, 1961
  17. J. L. REISS, 1965
  18. J. P. REISS, 1956-1958
  19. OTTO M. REISS, 1961
  20. OTTO M. REISS, 1961
  21. RAYMOND REISS, 1966
  22. WILLIAM REISS, 1968
  23. REISS BROS., data, 1960
  24. Reiss Steamship Company, 1954-1965
  25. Reiss Steamship Company, 1954-1965
  26. Reiss Steamship Company, 1954-1965

Box 5: Project Files, S-W, 1954-1979

Folders

  1. JOSEPH SELLWOOD, 1954
  2. Shallow draft 15 ton boat, 1963
  3. FRANCIS A. SMALL, 1967-1969
  4. SOHIO BID, 1960-1961
  5. STATE OF OHIO, 1955
  6. STEVE W., 1956-1957
  7. STEVE W., 1956-1957
  8. STOLT ATLANTIC, 1966
  9. STOLT ATLANTIC, 1966
  10. W. C. SWALM, 1955
  11. TAURUS, 1954
  12. M. C. TAYLOR, n.d.
  13. TOLEDO, 1956
  14. Toledo Area Construction Workers Health and Welfare Plan, 1954-1961
  15. Trophy Inscriptions, 1977-1979
  16. TUPELO, 1956-1957
  17. TUPELO, 1956-1957
  18. United States Fish & Wildlife Service, 1961
  19. United States Fish & Wildlife Service, 1961
  20. United States Fish & Wildlife Service, 1961
  21. Water Tank, 1955
  22. CHARLES C. WEST, 1957, 1961
  23. WHITE LUPINE, 1958
  24. Worked Jobs, 1961-1962

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