U. S. Steel Shuts Down Last Open Hearth Furnaces – Feb. 25, 1971

For many older people that lived in Lorain all their lives, the sight of a sky filled with orange-colored smoke coming from “National Tube" was just part of day-to-day life. I remember seeing it as a kid on W. 30th Street in the early 1960s and wondering what it was.

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.

“The basic oxygen process of steelmaking, known by steel men as BOP, will mark a new era in steel production at the Lorain steel facility founded in 1895.

“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.

1918 Pandemic Hits Lorain – Part 4

The front page of the October 25, 1918 Lorain Times-Herald pays tribute to Dr. Henry E. Koch of the United States health department and his assistance to the city in fighting the influenza epidemic. It notes, “The hygienist came here Monday night and at once assumed charge of the situation. As a result of his efficiency the emergency hospital was organized in 48 hours, quarantine restrictions were established, and all of the forces needed to combat the disease were put into working order in a few hours.

“Dr. Koch’s personality, his remarkable diplomacy and his skill as a scientist have procured the co-operation of the entire community.

“The result of the measures which have been employed by Dr. Koch, physicians say, have placed the epidemic under control and a decrease in the number of deaths and in the number of new cases is expected within a few days.”

Indeed, Lorain seems to have been fortunate to have someone overseeing its effort to control the disease. An interesting 2013 paper written by Haakon Bjoershol of Cleveland State University entitled, “Fighting the Germans. Fighting the Germs: Cleveland’s Response to the 1918-1919 Spanish Flu Epidemic notes, "Lorain, Ohio differed widely from Cleveland in two particular ways. In Cleveland, the Spanish Flu fight was led by their own health commissioner. 

"In Lorain, the fight was led by an outsider; Dr. Henry E. Koch of the United States Health Department. Arriving on October 22nd, Dr. Koch, although working closely with the local health department, still had the final say in Lorain's flu time actions. Although many of the measures were similar to Cleveland's, such as closing stores, prohibiting public assemblies, working with the Red Cross, and establishing emergency hospitals, one of the measures was very different. 

"One of the medical field's great quests throughout the epidemic was to find a working vaccine or serum to help combat the scourge. Cleveland's acting chief bacteriologist, Dr. G. E. Harmon was one of many who actively sought an effective serum for curing the "grippe". However, in Cleveland, Dr. Rockwood clearly stated that no flu serums would be used "until their worth have been proven.” 

"Dr. Koch was not as cautious. On October 26th, some six thousand steel workers at the National Tube Company in Lorain were inoculated with an influenza antitoxin. On October 28, encouraged by the low flu rates among the vaccinated steel workers, the doctor opened a free public inoculation center that offered the same serum that was being used at Camp Sherman to prevent pneumonia. On November 1, Koch and Lorain health officials began the process of vaccinating every single Lorain resident at the rate of 3,000 per day. Inoculations remained a primary tactic in Lorain even after the flu bans were lifted on November 18. Although some private institutions in Cleveland, such as St. Luke's hospital, decided to vaccinate their workers, inoculations and vaccinations never became a primary weapon against flu in Cleveland.”

The October 18, 1918 Times-Herald published this article on the front page announcing free vaccinations at the Y.M.C. A. building, courtesy of National Tube.

The October 30, 1918 Times-Herald included this ad for Borden’s Malted Milk with a Spanish Influenza theme.

The influenza continued on into November, with daily articles in the Times-Herald summarizing the deaths and providing updates. This one from November 1, 1918 noted that two inoculation stations were open, but that the “residents of the city were responding slowly and an appeal was made today that every one in the city go to one of the stations for free inoculations at once.”

This article from November 3, 1918 notes that, “The board of health last night modified its closing regulations. Under the new rule saloons must keep closed but they may receive phone orders and deliver bottled goods to their customers.”

The push to inoculate was stressed again in this Times-Herald article from November 5, 1918.

Even with six new deaths, this November 6, 1918 Times-Herald front page article expressed some optimism.

One sign of encouragement was the lifting of the ban on church services, as noted in this article from the News-Herald of November 9, 1918.

And on November 11, 1918, the Times-Herald’s front page focused only on the Armistice.

On November 13, 1918, the front page of the Times-Herald included this announcement that “the ban closing business places, schools and preventing all forms of meetings will be lifted in the three day period beginning Saturday and continuing to Monday.”

But the influenza was not quite finished with Lorain.

On the front page of the November 26, 1918 Times-Herald under the heading "TWO MORE FLU DEATHS TODAY," it was noted, "Scattered cases of influenza continue to be reported. Most of the new cases are light and few of them confine the sufferers to bed more than a day or so.”

An influenza tally was published on the front page of the Nov 27th edition. "3,054 FLU CASES DURING EPIDEMIC” was the heading of an article that reported, "Since official records of the influenza were kept in the middle of October, to November 23, 3,054 cases of influenza were reported to the city health officer, Dr. C. R. Meek.”

"FEAR NEW OUTBREAK INFLUENZA” was the headline of an article on December 3rd. The article noted, "Lorain physicians today issued a warning against the return of the influenza epidemic. Physicians are reporting a number of new cases.”

A rare national perspective appeared in the Dec 5th edition. “Between 300,000 and 350,000 deaths from influenza and pneumonia have occurred among the civilian population of the United States since Sept. 15, according to estimates of the public health service,” was reported. “About 20,000 deaths occurred in the camps in the United States war department records show."

But optimism returned a few days later in the December 10, 1918 Times-Herald under the heading, "IMPROVEMENT IS SHOWN IN FLU EPIDEMIC.” The article noted, "Steady improvement in the influenza situation is revealed by reports of physicians on record in the office of the city health officer. During October, November and to the present date in December 3790 cases of influenza were reported. There were 2,017 new cases reported in November and 1,227 in October. Deaths in October and November totaled 231. Of these 88 were in October and 143 in November. The records show the disease is slowly diminishing.”

"WARNS U. S. AGAINST NEW FLU OUTBREAK” was the heading of an article in the Times-Herald on December 12, 1918.  "Warning to the country that the influenza epidemic is by no means ended and that all possible precautions should be taken, was issued today by Surgeon General Blue, of the public health service,” it was reported. "Reports show a recrudescence of the disease practically from one end of the country to another.”

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Well, that concludes my look at how the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic unfolded in Lorain. 

It was shocking how the influenza seemed to strike out of nowhere and quickly spread throughout the city. It was equally surprising how fast it seemed to subside.

I think that having a respected government expert supervise the city’s efforts to control the disease was a brilliant move. Since Dr. Koch became a well-known member of the community that he was helping, his ‘local’ directives avoided the resentment that can occur when decisions are made and imposed by government officials from afar. Consequently, Lorain’s officials, the medical community and the citizens rose to the occasion in a great spirit of cooperation. And this was all more than a hundred years ago without benefit of social media or TV/radio commercials.

The newspaper coverage by the Times-Herald also struck a good balance of reporting just the facts without sensationalizing it. And being able to profile the victims of the disease in short but well-written biographies helped the paper to convey the reality of the influenza’s very real threat. There was also no attempt to compare how Lorain was doing in its efforts to combat the disease with other communities, or Ohio versus other states. The only focus was on the progress being made and communicating the necessary preventive recommendations on a daily basis.

Thus, the Times-Herald offered its readers what is needed most in the time of crisis and tragedy: hope.

National Tube Want Ad – April 26, 1947

Here’s a want ad illustrating the labor shortage that was experienced by National Tube in Lorain after World War II, necessitating the company’s importing of Puerto Rican workers.

The ad ran in the Lorain Journal on April 26, 1947 – 72 years ago today.

Note that there were several places in Lorain County that one could apply: at the plant employment office at 28th St. and Pearl; in the telephone company office at Wellington; and at the United States Employment Service in the Broadway Building.

There was a also a need for housing for workers, and the ad included a number to call if you had rooms available.

Just a little slice of Lorain’s history.

Open Hearth Era Begins at National Tube – Jan. 26, 1909

Here’s a neat article from 60 years ago commemorating an event that took place at National Tube Division, Lorain Works, 50 years before that.

The article is about the first heat poured from the new No. 1 furnace at National Tube on January 26, 1909. As the article noted, it was the beginning of the era of open hearth steel production at the plant.

Read all about it in the article below, which appeared on the front page of the January 26, 1959 Lorain Journal.

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I posted a great 1955 article about National Tube and the 60th anniversary of Lorain’s steel industry back here in 2012. The comments posted by readers about that article were great. 

Making Way for New Pipe Mill at National Tube – June 1958

Back when Lorain was defined by its steel mill, the goings-on at the plant was of much interest to its residents and consequently was covered in great detail by the Lorain Journal.

Sixty years ago, the National Tube Division’s Lorain Works was getting ready to construct a new continuous buttweld pipe mill. To make room for it, some buildings had to be torn down in the name of progress.

That’s the focus of the photo and caption below, which appeared on the front page of the Lorain Journal on June 13, 1958.

National Tube Foreman – 35 Years Without Being Absent or Late

From the front page of the Lorain Journal of November 10, 1954 – 62 years ago this week – comes a nice little article about one man’s incredible work record. It’s the story of Joe Endrai, a foreman at National Tube who never missed work or was late during his 35-year career at the plant.

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Lorain Man’s Record
35 Years On His Job,
Never Absent Or Tardy
By ROBERT DESROSIERS

Thirty-five years without being absent or even late for work!

That’s the record of Joe Endrai, who will be tendered a farewell dinner tonight in observance of his approaching retirement, Nov. 30, from his duties as foreman of Bessemer power houses and the open hearth boiler house in the fuels and power department of National Tube Co.

His remarkable record becomes positively amazing when you learn it was achieved while Joe was working all three shifts at the plant – first one, then a second and then the third in cycles.

Plenty of Steak
How did he do it?

“You just have to make up your mind to it,” he says. “Eat plenty of good steak, get at least seven hours or eight hours sleep and some daily outdoor exercise, and not too much drinking and smoking.”

He says he loves all sports and gets his outdoor exercise in his own garden. He’s just over average size; he stands about five feet and 10 inches and weighs in at 175.

Joseph Endrai was born in Kormoneo, Gyor, Austria-Hungary, Nov. 12, 1889, the third of four children, two of whom preceded him to this country. He will be 65 Friday.

He came to the United States in 1906 and went to work in the Amherst stone quarries. He was later employed at the Avon power station and in the Lorain shipyards, after one year at National Tube in 1914.

He returned to National Tube May 24, 1920, and has been there ever since, without missing that first day.

Joe became foreman of the skelp mill boiler house in 1921, and was appointed day foreman in 1944. He was named to his present position in 1951.

Likes to Travel
He was married in 1911 to the former Magdalene Bognar. They live at 2916 Andrews Pl.

Joe and his three sons, Frank, Elmer and George, have a combined service of 75 years in the fuels and power department. He and Mrs. Endrai also have five grandchildren.

Joe’s favorite hobby is traveling. He plans to do more of it in the days of his retirement, hitting new spots and revisiting the more familiar ones.

Farewell Dinner
About 35 active and retired department foremen are expected to attend Joe’s farewell dinner at Ann’s Restaurant.

D. K. Matheson will deliver the address and tribute, and M. E. Wilcox will serve at toastmaster. Others to participate: J. N. Evans, “A Word from the Boss”; G. J. Crehore. Jr., farewell from associates; P. H. Austin, welcome into retirement ranks, and W. O. Gruey, presentation of a farewell gift of matched luggage.

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Joe Endrai enjoyed a nice, long, well-deserved retirement, passing away in October 1975.

October 1, 1949 – Steel Strike

Here's an eye-grabbing front page back from the era when newspapers reserved their largest headlines for really BIG news.

And this was big news – the announcement that the nation's steel strike was going into effect, with the result that 12,000 steelworkers were idled at the Lorain works of National Tube Co.

The story is from the October 1, 1949 Lorain Journal – 64 years ago today. (Click on it for a readable version.)

Although many members of my family worked at the mill over the years, none of them were working there at the time of the strike. I'm sure it was quite stressful for those working there, as well as their families.

If you have any family stories about the strike or memories of it, be sure to post them!

National Tube Division – 1955

I'm sure most of you remember when the steel mill in Lorain was called "National Tube." I think the first time I heard that name was when I was a kid, in answer to my question, "Where's that red dust cloud coming from?" I can still see that smoke high in the sky over Lorain.

You don't hear the term "National Tube" very much any more, which is sad, because its use coincided with Lorain's best years. I read online somewhere that the name changed in 1969.

Anyway, here's another article about the history of steel making in Lorain. Last week's was from a 1939 perspective; this one is from the June 21, 1955 Lorain Journal.  It's written by Robert Urquhart, the General Superintendent at that time of the Lorain Works, National Tube Division of the United States Steel Corporation, and it provides a nice history of how the steel mill evolved.

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Urquhart Credits Workers As NTC Keystone
By ROBERT URQUHART
General Superintendent
Lorain Works

Publication of this edition summarizing The Lorain Story comes almost on the 60th anniversary of Lorain's steel industry.

Vintage postcard from Ebay

Two generations of steel, rail and pipe makers have made a full contribution to the progress and development of Lorain Works, and, in recent years, there have been an increasing number of third generation employes – grandsons of some of the original Johnson Company pioneers – among them three generation names like Thomas, Bremer, Cameron, Bevan, to name a few.

Story of Human Effort
The story of what is now Lorain Works, a plant of the National Tube Division and one of the larger units in the United States Steel Corporation, is more than a matter of dollars and cents and tonnages and new installments. It is the story of human effort and of what the industry means and has meant to thousands of individual families, as well as to the community as a whole.

Lorain Works today is, of course, a far cry from the plant that Tom L. Johnson built in 1894 and 1895 for the manufacturer of street railway rails, but it is doubtful if he would be surprised if he could see it today.

He recognized certain fundamental economic advantages in Lorain's location – factors which apply as well today as they did in 1895.

Among these were its location on Black River, where it empties into Lake Erie; economical water transportation for ore shipment from the upper lakes; a high level ground easily prepared for a manufacturing site; a thick shale formation at a depth of 6 to 8 feet suitable for industrial foundations; the possibility of a plentiful supply of water, and good railroad facilities.

Steel Making Can Be Profitable
"We are convinced," A. J. Moxham, the president of the Johnson Company told Lorain Village Council on April 2, 1894, "that steel can be manufactured and distributed more cheaply from this locality than from any other in the country." The principal disadvantage was that the river was not navigable; and this deficiency was promptly remedied.

The history of the plant begins logically in Johnstown, Pa., where in 1888, Johnson and his associates established what was known as the Johnson Steel Street Rail Company, for the manufacture of steel street railway rails, switch equipment, etc.

On May 31, 1889, the switch works was destroyed by the famous Johnstown flood. The switch works were rebuilt at Moxham, near Johnstown, but it became apparent as time went on that the plant could not produce profitably in that location.

After considerable study, the decision was made to locate in Lorain. That the choice was a good one has been demonstrated by the fact that Lorain has consistently maintained its position as one of the plants where steel can be produced most economically.

Recent large-scale expenditures on equipment and facilities – a 10-year plant-wide modernization and construction program – is a significant indication of the basic soundness of Lorain's position in the industry. Additional expenditures for the same purpose are contemplated.

Purchased 4,000 Acres of Land
Upon deciding to build in Lorain, the Johnson Company, in 1894, purchased about 4,000 acres of land on both sides of Black River, providing a navigable waterfront of four miles, and proceeded to build the industry and what amounted to an adjoining "town" to go with it.

Johnstown and other Pennsylvania mill towns furnished skilled steel and rolling mill men who comprised much of the original Johnson Company work force in Lorain.

Steel rails were the only finished product of the original plant. There were no blast furnaces, and pig iron from which the steel for the rails was made, was imported from outside furnaces.

The buildings comprised the rail mill, bessemer, one blooming mill and a few shops. Officers were Moxham, president; Tom L. Johnson, vice-president; and Max Suppes, general manager. About 1,200 men were employed.

Some idea of the growth during the 60 years' existence of the plant can be realized from a comparison with the present works, which has five big blast furnaces which receive ore from modern docks more than a half a mile in length; three Bessemer converters of 28-net ton capacity; 399 by-product coke ovens; two rolling mills, one of them of the most modern type, and two skelp mills; buttweld mills and four seamless mills; and one of the world's largest pipe warehouses, plus a large electric power plant and numerous auxiliary shops.

Most Modern Facilities Installed
In the years since 1945, some of the most modern steel mill facilities have been installed at Lorain Works; entirely modernized facilities for producing bessemer steel; up-to-date rolling mill facilities for the processing of semi-finished steel; new type continuous seamless mill for the production of small-size seamless pipe; amplified and improved facilities for shipping and transportation; and improved and modernized facilities for producing coke and coal chemical products.

For its first three years, the Lorain plant was operated as the Johnson Company. In 1898, Johnson disappeared from the Lorain Works picture and the plant was re-incorporated as the Lorain Steel Company.

In 1899, the Lorain Steel Company became a subsidiary of the Federal Steel Company, which had been organized by Judge Elbert H. Gary and two blast furnaces, the docks and No. 2 blooming mill were put in operation. For the first time, the plant here began to make its own blast furnace iron.

U. S. Steel Organized 1901

The U. S. Steel Corporation was organized in 1901, including the Federal Steel Company, and with it, the Lorain Steel Company. No change was made in the local organization until late in 1903, when it was  announced that Lorain Works was to become part of the National Tube Company branch of U. S. Steel and that pipe mills and other additional facilities would be built.

Vintage postcard from Ebay

With the taking over of the Lorain plant in 1903, construction work commenced in June, 1904 on the pipe mills, skelp mills and their auxiliaries, in addition to blast furnaces Nos. 3 and 4. These installations were completed in 1905. In 1907, a fifth blast furnace was added. The new tube plant by rapid strides soon overshadowed the original plant.

First pipe was made in the new plant on February 10, 1905. First six of the 12 open hearth furnaces were built in 1909, making possible a wider range of steel grades. No. 3 blooming mill and four batteries of coke plant batteries, together with the by-product plant, were added in 1918.

By-Products Important Factor
Important factors in Lorain Works' operations are the production of coke plant by-products, and the utilization of gas in the production of coke from coal. This gas is now "bottled up" and used in the manufacture of commercial products, such as ammonium sulphate, tar, crude naphtha, naphthalene, phenol, benzol, xylol, and toluol. Tar and gas are used in the heating and melting of steel.

Vintage postcard from Ebay

Another by-product of the plant is crushed slag – the waste from the blast furnaces. Once considered useless, nearly a million tons of this crushed slag were produced last year, to be sold on the market chiefly as road construction material.

In the latter 1920's came a technological change, with seamless mills being built to replace the lapwell mills. Nos. 1, 2 and 3 seamless mills were completed and put in operation in 1926, 1928 and 1929 respectively. The seamless process,the outstanding development in Lorain pipe production, is a method by which steel rounds are pierced, expanded and then rolled. Welding is eliminated by this process which results in the name "seamless." Many important technological improvements in seamless pipe manufacture have been developed at Lorain Works.

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Below is a Bing™ aerial photo of the blast furnaces today, which are now part of the Republic Steel portion of the steel mill site. I've studied the above postcard, and can't quite find the equivalent buildings and the furnaces in the photo. Can you?

Birth of the Steel Mill – Part Two

Here is the conclusion of the article from the July 26, 1939 issue of the Lorain Journal and the Lorain Times-Herald. It tells the story of the transformation of the farms, forest and swampland in what is now South Lorain into Lorain's original steel mill.

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STEEL CITY (Part Two)

Farms Changed to Mills Within 16 Months

A 'NEW TOWN' RISES

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following story was written especially for the 60th Anniversary edition of the Journal by John Gould, secretary of the National Tube Co.'s Old Timers Committee.

BY JOHN GOULD

First Child Born

The first child born in the Sheffield allotment was a son to Mr. and Mrs. Ault, grocery store keeper on Seneca-st. Walter Ault grew up in the community, but at present is living in the west.

Tom L. Johnson can be given credit for paying high wages for labor than was being paid elsewhere for the same type of work.

Tom L. Johnson (in bowler hat) in his Red Devil
Photo courtesy www.teachingcleveland.org

He will be remembered by many in connection with his famous auto, the "Red Devil," which he used to make his business trips to Lorain and his political trips throughout the state. The auto cost $11,000 and Johnson and Arthur Fuller his driver were always in trouble with the law for speeding. The "Red Devil" was driven 200,000 miles by Johnson, when it was bought by E. W. Kneen who was head of the Sheffield Land Co., in Lorain, and he added another 100,000 miles to its record before it was scrapped.

Many interesting stories might be told of A. J. Moxham and his very interesting family and the beautiful mansion with its 71 rooms, its swimming pool and its theatre and green house in the wilderness, on property now occupied by the Whittier Junior High School.

The mansion was dismantled when Moxham moved to Nova Scotia.

GAR Veterans at Work

The three bachelors, Pat Boyd, Dan Coolridge, H. C. Ryding, who rented a house on East 31st-st just off Pearl-av and were outstanding characters during the early steel plant days, are another potential source of stories.

The three Grand Army men who came to Lorain with the Johnstown organization, John Litz, Sr., Ad Penrod and B. F. "Dad" Wisinger, are another.

Of the group "Dad" Wisinger was the first Lorain workman to be granted a pension, being pensioned April 1, 1911. John Litz was the last Grand Army man to work in the mills was was the last survivor. He was pensioned Jan. 1st 1918 and died March 31, 1931 at the age of 82.

While men were cutting down trees and dynamiting stumps, a young photographer of Elyria, Carl W. Scheide, was hired to make a picture record of the progress of work done. As a result a number of folios with hundreds of large sized pictures each carefully dated and noted as to the progress of work during the eventful days. The folios are on file in the general office.

Promoted Safety

Mr. Suppes not only was a master in engineering and mechanics, but was a great organizer, and the plant in Lorain will always remain a monument to his genius. He was ahead of his times in the matter of safety and the welfare of his men. Long before it was popular in the mills and factories throughout the country, he insisted on cleanliness and safety first in every department of the plant.

His first general foreman, Robert McKee, he secured from the construction company who erected the iron works in both the Johnstown and Lorain plants because McKee could not only get works done efficiently but he had ability to handle men safely.

One of the early instructions which was printed and posted throughout the plant was to the effect that workmen were not to obey any order which might endanger his life or limb. This order was issued by Mr. Suppes when generally the foreman's order was law. Not so with Mr. Suppes.

When the Lorain Steel Co., became part of the United States Steel corporation with Chas. M. Schwab the corporation's first president, Schwab and a committee from various plants visited Lorain, and after an inspection of the local plant, Schwab had the committee form a large circle and stepping to the center, he took off his hat and bowing to Suppes, stated he took off his hat to the man who had the cleanest, safest and best kept plant in the corporation.

Veterans Named

Of a possible quarter of a million men who have labored in connection with the plant since its inception I wish to mention just a few names in addition to those already named:

E.T. Horan, Watkin Y. Williams, R. L. Rankin, Ben Cargo, Robert Niz, George Ferguson, George Bailey, the Bonsor Brothers, Ben Bevan, J. T. Jelley, Mart Sanders, W. W. Whitehouse, William Andrews, H. W. Thomas, Clark Loughry, Ed. Buchannan, J. L. Chapman, M. A. Donaldson, George Schoutz, H. K. Ford, Fred W. Waterman, L. R. Williams, J. B. Clark, John Kent.

Of this group of men who recall events of those early days, only one is in active service, all others are retired or just a memory.

That Lorain will eventually become a large city and a great industrial center is assured because of its location and its natural resources, land in abundance, with good shale foundation with only six to eight feet of subsoil, good drainage, being better than fifty feet above river level at steel plant, and a river and a harbor unexcelled on the great lakes. With these and other splendid resources nothing can prevent Lorain's continued growth.

The writer's first information of Lorain was gained when he read in a Pittsburgh paper a glowing report of the model city and plant to be erected in Lorain by Tom L. Johnson. Like many others he was led at a later date to the promised land by that cloud of smoke by day and pillar of fire by night; only at first to be disappointed, but as years passed by to become an enthusiastic booster. To enjoy the experience of growing up with a community as we did in the steel plant district, comes to a man once in a life time.

Vintage postcard from Ebay

Birth of the Steel Mill – Part One

Here's an interesting article from the July 26, 1939 issue of the Lorain Journal and the Lorain Times-Herald. It tells the story of the transformation of the farms, forest and swampland in what is now South Lorain into Lorain's original steel mill.

The illustration above accompanied the article. What's surprising is the caption, which refers to "Grandma Ferguson." I guess 35 years after "Auntie" Ferguson passed away, her story – as well as her name – was already being forgotten, as there is no mention of her in the article. But someone must have had some vague recollection of an old woman who was allowed to live near the mill, and realized that she was an integral part of the story.

Nevertheless, the article is a terrific one. It's rather long, so I've busted it into two parts. Here is part one.

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STEEL CITY
Farms Changed to Mills Within 16 Months
A 'NEW TOWN' RISES

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following story was written especially for the 60th Anniversary edition of the Journal by John Gould, secretary of the National Tube Co.'s Old Timers Committee.

BY JOHN GOULD

Old Globeville Rd. next to the Black River in 1894 prior to
the construction of a dam and reservoir west of the skelp mills 

On Decoration day, May 30, 1894, five men met by appointment, upon the bank of the Black River at the Hyre farm, on the old Globeville-rd at the very center of Sheffield-twp.

The men were Tom L. Johnson, Arthur J. Moxham and J. B. Coffinbery, arriving from Cleveland, all three mounted on handsome horses; and Max M. Suppes and D. D. Lewis coming from Pittsburgh, driving from Elyria in a horse and buggy.

With a walk of a mile from this point in a southwestern direction thru the Studley farm, forest and swamp land, the men decided upon the location of the temporary field offices and the site of the main buildings comprising the future plant.

It is interesting to note before proceeding with the story of the plant, that while men in Lorain and elsewhere had predicted Lorain's future as a steel center, yet the half dozen farms along the Globeville-rd running along the river bank from the Studley farm on the west to the Smith farm on the east including District No. 2 school, were quietly bought up by Coffinbery and the land further south which was to comprise the site of the steel works proper and the Sheffield allotment without the land owners suspecting the motive.

Johnson and Moxham provided the way for financing the undertaking, Coffinbery was in charge of purchasing the land, and Suppes was to be entrusted with full authority as to details of building the plant. He had been joined by Lewis in Pittsburgh three months earlier to help with drawings and plans.

June 8, 1894, ground was broken for actual construction. On that day, Joseph Kaplow, a Lorain man, who was an employee of the Lorain Brass Works but temporarily out of work, was hired and instructed to get pick and shovel and dig foundation for weight-scales, preparatory to weighing incoming materials. Young Kaplow walked back to Penfield-av, bought the tools, and, returning, threw the first shovelful of dirt, and to him goes that honor.

Steel In 10 Months

April 1, 1895, at 10:30 p. m. the first heat of steel was blown. Thus the plant was built and making steel in practically ten months. To transform forest and swamp land into a steel plant and an allotment with well drained streets and modern homes for hundreds of workmen and their families in less than a year was nothing short of a miracle, considering that the winter of '94 was extremely bitter, the temperature often was below zero and the men working on construction in many cases having to work under tents.

Cupola House & Trestle under construction - Nov. 27, 1894
(Photo courtesy Black River Historical Society)

Building that were erected during these months were built to stand for ages, but due to the change of method in steel operations some of these buildings have become obsolete and have been razed. During the past two years the iron cupola building, No. 1 boiler house and gas producers, hydraulic stripper and trestle have had to go.

With the coming of large numbers of men to the steel plant district, the religious and temperance forces under the leadership of Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Sheffield began a religious work in the community.

Letters were exchanged with Tom L. Johnson in Washington, congressman from Cleveland district, urging him to use his influence to make the steel plant district bone-dry, this he refused to do so, stating in his letters to Mrs. Mary Steele Day that he did not favor prohibition; that the question of drinking and elimination of the saloon be left for the men themselves to decide.

Limited Saloons
He did however use his influence for temperance when he permitted the Sheffield Land Co. to restrict the sale of liquor to only two places in the new allotment.

All other lots sold by the company contained a clause prohibiting the sale of intoxicating liquors.

It is told of Mrs. Hyre that when she was asked to sell her farm by Coffinbery for picnic purposes, that at first refused on the grounds that she did not care to hear noise around the farm especially on Sunday, which would be the case if the farm and island just over the river bank from her home was sold and used as a picnic ground.

Another farmer who sold his farm to Coffinbery stated years later that after he sold it he bought a house and lot in the new allotment and paid practically as much for the house as he had received for his farm.

Homes Demolished
All that is left of the half dozen farm homes and barn that once lined the famous road is the foundation stones and cisterns, and cellars filled with rubbish. One of the larger cisterns which is in fair state of preservation is located on the former Austin dairy farm. It had a capacity of 15,000 gallons.

The first two homes to be built and occupied in the new allotment were the homes on the northwest corner of Seneca and East 29th-st and was occupied by Buff Hochstein and family, and the house on the southwest corner of Seneca and East 30th-st, occupied by Squire McCann and family, Lorain's first justice of the peace.

From Johnstown, with the coming of hundreds of Johnstown people came Dr. H. H. Hoffman who was the company's first surgeon. He was soon succeeded by Dr. William E. Wheatley who for many years has been the city's leading surgeon, who had endeared himself in the hearts of the mill men with his great surgical skill and devotion to men.

Next: the Conclusion to "Steel City"

National Tube Entrance Then and Now

Several of my posts this week have all sprouted from my drive along Pearl Avenue last Saturday. So I  might as well end the week just as Pearl Avenue ends, at the gates to the steel mill.

Here is a vintage postcard looking north towards the gates that are well-known to so many Lorainites.

And here is my corresponding photograph from last Saturday.

It's not a perfect recreation of the postcard's camera angle, but it's fairly close – plus I did it from memory!

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In its heyday, the National Tube Company was one of the largest steel mills in the world, covering more than 1,440 acres. The mill was like a city with its own dock, power plant, water works, police department and fire department. It once employed about 12,000 people!

The plant has operated under several names, including the National Tube Company of U.S. Steel and the Lorain Cuyahoga Works of U.S. Steel. It became USS/KOBE in 1989.

In August 1999, Republic Technologies acquired the bar business. U.S. Steel continues to operate the seamless pipe portion of the mill as the Lorain Pipe Mills.

Most Lorainites have some connection with the steel plant; if they didn't work there themselves, some family member, friend or neighbor did.

I worked there one summer as a college student. It was a pretty fascinating way to spend the summer.

I had a pretty cushy job – in refrigeration! Which means that I was one of several college kids helping the guys who were troubleshooting, repairing and installing air conditioner units throughout the plant.

The days that we spent removing or installing air conditioners in offices were pretty fun. But when we had to go out into the steel mill and blow the dust out of these huge industrial fans – ugh. You and your 'green clothes' ended up covered with black dust. Climbing around in cranes high above everything, trying to remove a window unit wasn't much fun either.

I learned two things by the end of summer. One: the regular steel workers really earned their pay – and my respect. And two: I did not want to work in a steel mill.