Founded 1922 | ||
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Founders Frederic H. Gibbs, William Francis Gibbs | ||
Gibbs & Cox is a U.S. naval architecture firm that specializes in designing surface warships. Founded in 1922 in New York City, Gibbs & Cox is now headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.
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The firm has offices in New York City; Washington, D.C.; Newport News, Virginia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and New Orleans, LA.
In 2003, more than 150 warships built to the firm's designs, including 60 percent of the U.S. Navy's surface combatant fleet, were on active duty in nearly 20 navies.
History
The firm was founded as "Gibbs Brothers" by self-taught naval architect William Francis Gibbs and his brother Frederic H. Gibbs. The name was changed when architect Daniel H. Cox of Cox & Stevens joined the firm in 1929.
In 1931, Gibbs & Cox designed the MV Savarona, a large luxury yacht.
According to company officials, more than 70 percent of U.S. tonnage launched during World War II was built to Gibbs & Cox designs. Ship types included destroyers, LST landing craft, minesweepers, tankers, cruisers, Liberty Ships, and a variety of conversions.
In 1950, Gibbs & Cox designed the SS United States, the largest liner ever built in the United States and the fastest liner built anywhere.
Ships Designed by Gibbs & Cox
Among the ship classes designed by Gibbs & Cox are:
Among the individual ships designed by Gibbs & Cox are:
Model shop
From 1939 until 1962, the firm operated a model shop that produced high-quality ship models that are considered among "the very finest examples of the steel ship modeler's art ever to be seen." Of these, the most expensive and elaborate was a 1/24-scale cutaway model of the USS Agerholm. This model, which is over 16 feet long, shows the complete inner structure on the starboard, and the exterior on the port.
Another notable model is the USS Missouri as she appeared on September 2, 1945, at 9:02 in the morning, the time of the Japanese surrender. This 1/48-scale ship required 77,000 man-hours to construct, and is as of September 2012 on display at the Navy Museum, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, DC.