August 4, 2026
Marking 140 Years of HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia
Founded in 1886, HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding division has a storied legacy of advancing shipbuilding for the United States and making meaningful contributions to the community.
Virginia Business highlighted the 140-year history of Newport News Shipbuilding in their August issue, highlighting businesses across Virginia marking significant milestone anniversaries in 2026.
140 Years | Newport News Shipbuilding
(Aug. 2, 2026 by Anna-Louise Jackson)
Shipbuilders working on state-of-the-art aircraft carriers and submarines at Newport News Shipbuilding today needn’t look far for tangible reminders of the legacy preceding them. Just outside the shipyard’s gate sits the tugboat Dorothy, the first vessel built there in 1891, while a memorial to founder Collis P. Huntington inside the facility bears his now-familiar guiding principle, which has been adapted by a variety of industries from distilleries to handymen: “We shall build good ships here, at a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always good ships.”
The shipyard has more than delivered on the promise of its railroad magnate-turned-shipbuilding visionary. Since its 1886 founding, Newport News Shipbuilding has designed, constructed, overhauled and repaired more than 800 ships for military and commercial purposes. Now Virginia’s largest industrial employer with 26,000 workers, the shipyard exclusively serves the U.S. Navy, building upon a storied legacy that saw it construct 49 vessels during World War II alone.
A major turning point came in 2011 with the formation of Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII). A publicly traded company resulting from the merger of Newport News Shipbuilding and Mississippi-based Ingalls Shipbuilding, HII is now the largest U.S. shipbuilder.
But hundreds of incremental milestones during the past 140 years have likewise been vital to the company’s success, says Kari Wilkinson, executive vice president of HII and president of Newport News Shipbuilding. A through line is the dedicated shipbuilders who embody a sense of patriotism and commitment to something bigger than themselves, she adds.
Continue reading the entire story from Virginia Business here.
“For those who make shipbuilding a career, that’s very much part of their spirit,”
– HII executive vice president and Newport News Shipbuilding President Kari Wilkinson
HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding Marks 140 Years of Service to the Nation
NEWPORT NEWS, Va., (Jan. 28, 2026) — HII’s (NYSE: HII) Newport News Shipbuilding division is marking 140 years of service to the nation today. On Jan. 28, 1886, Collis P. Huntington, a businessman whose investments enabled completion of the U.S. transcontinental railroad, turned his focus to shipbuilding, establishing what was first chartered as Chesapeake Dry Dock and Construction Co. and was then renamed Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company.
Read More HereAbout HII
HII is America’s largest shipbuilder, delivering the world’s most powerful ships and all-domain mission technologies, including unmanned systems, to U.S. and allied defense customers. HII is the largest producer of unmanned underwater vehicles for the U.S. Navy and the world.
With a more than 140-year history of advancing U.S. national security, HII builds and integrates defense capabilities extending from the core fleet to C6ISR, AI/ML, EW and synthetic training. Headquartered in Virginia, HII’s workforce is 45,000 strong.
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