But that all came to an end when U. S. Steel shut down the “smoke-belching open hearth furnaces” mentioned in the front page article above, which appeared in the Journal on Feb. 25, 1971 – fifty years ago today.
As the article notes, “The new $80 million basic oxygen steelmaking complex will completely replace the open hearths which have been spewing heavy clouds of orange smoke for years.
“One of two 220-ton BOP furnaces is now in operation on three eight-hour shifts daily producing about 220 tons of steel every hour without smoke.”
Of particular interest in the article is the number of employees at the mill. The article notes, “The steel plant is operating at a high pace with an estimated 7,400 production workers to meet increased demands for steel and steel products.
“More than 400 new employes have been hired at Lorain Works since last Dec. 13.”
It sure made for a good life for those workers (who earned every penny), and a robust Lorain as a result.
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So when did the Open Hearth era begin at the mill? The year was 1909. Click here to read all about it.
Hey Dan - My grandmother lived for awhile on 28th street, across from the mill and I remember as a kid everything was always covered in an orange metallic grit, especially the cars in south Lorain. It's funny looking back that that was 'normal' and you really didn't think much of it. She was always cleaning inside and out trying to keep things tidy. Also my aunt who lived on the eastside had a new white shingled roof installed on her house in the late 60's, it wasn't too long before it was stained orange and needed to be replaced. It's amazing that everyone who grew up in Lorain in the 50's and 60's doesn't have black (orange) lung disease. Todd
ReplyDeleteYour blog today took me back to my grandparents house in Lorain near Lexington Avenue and 32nd Street. In the mid 1950s during summer vacations my brother and I would spend a week or so with my grandparents. It was a fun time spending summer days in an older home on a quiet tree lined residential street and playing with the neighbor kids who were our age. The relationship between my grandparents home and the open hearth furnaces at the National tube was what we kids called "pixie dust". When the furnaces were operating at full blast the orange smoke from the operation was loaded with ash residue, which on calm summer nights would settle over Lorain. This ash contained particulates that sparkled when the sun hit them, thus the kids name "pixie dust". My grandparents home contained a full front porch where my brother and I, along with the neighbor kids, would play games or swap baseball cards -- but not before my grandmother swept the porch with a broom each morning to clear the ash. It was a morning ritual. I would guess that any of your readers who lived in Lorain at that time remember that ash.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Todd and Rick, for leaving the great reminisces! I was hoping for some comments that would include more detail than what my own experiences could provide, and you two both hit a home run that many Lorainites can relate to and enjoy!
ReplyDeleteBy the way the above comments are going I am surprised that the city of Lorain didn't have a high cluster rate of cancers or other diseases caused from the steel mill.Just like in Wellington.The old Sterling Foundry caused the highest % of multiple sclerosis cases in the whole USA.Roughly 1% of the total population of Wellington were affected.And this wasn't that long ago.This was back in the late '90s.This was by people just living near the plant.They didn't even work there and they wound up with MS.I think the Foundry also had an 8 acre dump site near the Wellington Reservoir.So people hanging around the reservoir were affected as well.So much for being environmentally friendly.I know people want jobs but some types of jobs just aren't worth it in the long run.
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