In 1920 the Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Company commissioned four oil tankers from Oakland shipyards of the Union Construction Company. Union Construction was founded in 1910 by Walter Johnson and Harry Peake, initially specializing in the design and manufacture of mining dredges for the Alaskan market. In 1918 the firm constructed a shipyard in Oakland and expanded production to encompass ships.
Anglo-Saxon was a subsidiary of Royal Dutch / Shell (today’s “Shell Oil”), an international oil company headquartered in London and The Hague. Anglo-Saxon managed tankers, tank installations, and distribution facilities for Royal Dutch / Shell on a world-wide basis. The four commissioned oil tankers were delivered in 1921 and named after mollusk shells following tradition of the Shell Transport and Trading Company:
- Acardo
- Achatina
- Amalthus
- Ampullaria
The steamship Amalthus, the fourth and final oil tanker built for Royal Dutch / Shell in the Oakland Yards, cost $1,500,000. The vessel was propelled by two triple-expansion engines and designed to carry 8400 deadweight tons at a maximum speed of 11.5 knots per hour.
On Thursday, August 11, 1921, after ten weeks of construction the Amalthus was christened at the yards of the Union Construction Company. The Amalthus was sponsored by Baroness Jan Carel van Eck (the former Agnes Lilly Tillmann of San Francisco), wife of Baron Jan Carel van Panthaleon van Eck, president of the Shell Company of California. The ceremony was accompanied by music furnished by the shipyard band in the presence of Shell company officials, invited guests, and Union Construction employees. At 5 o’clock Baroness van Eck “broke a bottle of ‘California’s best’ over the huge vessel as it slid from the ways.”
Five additional weeks were required to complete the vessel. The Amalthus was scrapped in 1935.
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