Port of Mobile

The Port of Mobile grew from a settlement founded by the Le Moyne brothers in 1702 about 30 miles up the Mobile River from Dauphin Island, which Bienville moved in 1711 to its present site [1]. The port is managed by the Alabama State Port Authority, which shipped more than 23 million tons in 2010. See Mobile and Mobile Bay.

Early development

Mobile joined the United States in 1813. The state created a harbor commission in 1824 and 1825, and federal funds deepened the channel by seven feet. After the Union victory at Mobile Bay in August 1864 and the surrender on April 12, 1865, a warehouse explosion on May 25, 1865 killed about 300 workers. Federal spending exceeded $7 million on harbor work from 1880 to 1915, the channel reached 23 feet in 1890 allowing deep-draft ocean vessels, and in 1889 more than one billion board feet of lumber were shipped [1].

Shipbuilding and State Docks

ADDSCO received the first Mobile shipbuilding contracts in 1917, and about 50 ships were built from 1918 to 1921. The legislature authorized the Alabama State Docks in 1922, and they opened in 1928 on a 500-acre site, more than doubling commercial shipping capacity. In World War II the waterfront workforce exceeded 89,000 and more than 200 ships were built [1].

Modern operations

The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, a 234-mile system costing more than $2 billion, was completed in 1984. Terminals include a coal terminal on McDuffie Island, the AM/NS Calvert terminal on Pinto Island and the Choctaw Point Container Terminal. Austal USA builds littoral combat ships, and the first one completed in Mobile was USS Independence in 2009 [1]. See Airbus Mobile Final Assembly Line.

History

The Le Moyne brothers founded a settlement in 1702 and Bienville moved it to its present site in 1711, nearer deeper Gulf water. Federal dredging deepened the channel to 23 feet by 1890, and from 1880 to 1915 the government spent more than million on the harbor. Cotton, timber and coal were the main exports, with over one billion board feet of lumber shipped in 1889 alone.[2]

Shipbuilding and State Docks

Shipyards built about 50 ships from 1918 to 1921 and more than 200 in World War II, when the waterfront workforce exceeded 89,000. The Alabama State Docks opened in 1928 and more than doubled commercial shipping capacity. Austal USA later won multibillion-dollar littoral combat ship contracts, and the first vessel completed in Mobile was USS Independence (LCS 2) in 2009.[2]

Waterway, terminals and cargo

The 234-mile Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, costing over billion, was completed in 1984 and connects to the Gulf at Mobile. The article calls it the nation’s ninth largest port; the State Port Authority shipped more than 23 million tons in 2010. Terminals include AM/NS Calvert on Pinto Island, a coal terminal on McDuffie Island and the Choctaw Point Container Terminal. Main commodities are coal, aluminum, iron, steel, lumber, wood pulp and chemicals.[2]

FAQs

When did the State Docks open? 1928.

What does it ship? Coal, aluminum, steel, lumber and chemicals.

Sources

1. Encyclopedia of Alabama: Port of Mobile
2. Encyclopedia of Alabama: Port of Mobile

Editorially reviewed by Specialty Digest Editorial TeamLast reviewed November 10, 2026Researched and drafted with AI assistanceReport an issue