Shipyard owner, Alfred Fernandez Yarrow, was born in London in 1842 as the age of steam propulsion began. He studied at University College School, London, where he was profoundly influenced by the teaching of the physicist, Michael Faraday. Aged 15, he started an apprenticeship at Messrs Ravenill, Marine Engineers in Greenwich.
By the age of 23, Yarrow had set up his own shipyard on the Isle of Dogs. Between 1869 and 1875, the yard built 150 steam launches including one used by Henry Stanley to search the Congo for the missing explorer, David Livingstone.
As the company grew, Yarrow moved his shipyard to Folly Wall, Poplar and built river vessels for export. It also built torpedo boat destroyers for the Japanese and Argentine navies. The Royal Navy then commissioned Yarrow to build two destroyers, HMS Havock and HMS Hornet, which were completed in 1892.
Increasing land, transport and labour costs prompted Yarrow make the bold decision to relocate the company and its 300 staff to Scotstoun on the river Clyde in Scotland in 1906.
During the First World War, Yarrow built 50 vessels for the Royal Navy including destroyers, gunboats, a submarine and hospital ships. Alfred Yarrow was knighted in 1916 for his services to the nation. After the war orders for naval vessels declined and Yarrow reluctantly put the company into voluntary liquidation.
However, Alfred's son Harold took over the business and gradually got it back on track by reverting to traditional shallow-draught river vessels for export. Yarrow died in 1932 at the age of 90, having seen his company return to prosperity.
