Modern Greece's first industry? The shipbuilding center of sailing merchant marine of Syros, 1830–70

Wooden shipbuilding represented a very important economic activity in Greece during the nineteenth century, and it was strictly related to the growth of the Greek-owned merchant marine. Particularly in Hermoupolis of Syros, a major commercial and shipping center of the same period, wooden shipbuilding experienced unprecedented rates of growth, helping it to become one of the major shipbuilding centers of the Mediterranean. The article examines whether this activity can be characterized as the first industry of Modern Greece before the introduction of the factory system. The analysis includes an overview of the level of industrialization during the period 1830–70, the conditions of the establishment and growth of wooden shipbuilding in Hermoupolis, its occurrence at a national and international level, its contribution to the local and national economy, and last but not least, the specific aspects that may perhaps be seen as factors in the "industrialization" of a craft-based activity.