Hanna, Donald & Wilson

Hanna, Donald and Wilson were a Scottish engineering and shipbuilding firm which flourished in the Victorian era.

In July 1834 Reid & Hanna were reported to have finished a very beautiful sheet iron gig for use on the Paisley Canal, together with Walker firm.

[2] In late 1834 the company launched a 70 feet boat with an unloaded draught of 6 inches, for trade on the canals.

In 1870 the business changed its name to Hanna, Donald & Wilson,[1] and moved its center of operations to the Abercorn Foundry and Abbey Works in Paisley.

In the second half of the nineteenth century the company offered its services as gas and water engineers, iron founders and boiler makers.

Operating from a landlocked site, the shipbuilding department of the company specialized in shallow draught boats for inland waters.

She was launched there, but sank when she was lowered for a test, probably because of the lack of skill and experience in the riveting which was required to properly assemble such a structure.

Hanna, Donald & Wilson worked on many iron and steel roofs for railway stations and other large structures.

In these years the glazing of the station roof was entirely replaced with new strengthened clear glass panels.

Hanna was also involved or built gasworks in Amsterdam, Bucharest, Kharkiv, Brisbane and Melbourne.

In Scotland itself Hanna, Donald & Wilson was involved in Glasgow, Paisley, Greenock, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Leith.

Fervent -class destroyer
Albert bridge, Glasgow
The gas holder in Paisley