William Pile (shipbuilder)

William Pile
Designer, shipwright and engine builder
Born	(1823-10-10)10 October 1823 Sunderland, England
Died	(1873-06-05)5 June 1873 (aged 49) Hotel, Bishopsgate Street, London, England
Nationality	English
Citizenship	British

William Pile (10 October 1823 – 5 June 1873) was a British shipbuilder. 'His genius was displayed in the building of ships, wherein he was not excelled. As Watt was great as a builder of engines; and Stephenson was great as a builder of railways; so William Pile was great as a builder of ships.'^[1]

He was the first to introduce the Clipper class of ship to the river Wear, Sunderland.

A testament to his art can be seen today, the Composite Clipper ship City of Adelaide. The ship was classed as "Experimental" by Lloyd's of London in 1864; it would be a few years before Lloyds would formalise the rules for constructing composite ships, the rules for which were used for the design and construction of the composite Clipper ship Cutty Sark.

His bust, now on display in the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens, was paid for by donations from his friends.