Steel Mills in the Mon Valley in Allegheny County

Rationale

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  1. I grew up in Glassport, a small town south of Pittsburgh. Glassport is in the region known as the Mon Valley, the valley where the Monongahela River (Mon River) flows. The Mon River flows north from West Virginia through southwestern Pennsylvania, to Pittsburgh where it merges with the Allegheny River to form the Ohio River.
  2. During the Industrial Revolution, steel mills were built all along the Mon River. This is partially because of geography. West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania have significant deposits of coal. Coal was shipped in barges on the Mon River, where it was offloaded for use in the mills. You can still see this at the Clairton Coke Works, which is one of the few mills still open.
  3. As you can see in the map below, mills were all along the river. In fact, I grew up in a house less than six blocks away from the Bucyrus-Erie plant.
  4. Life in these towns along the Mon River revolved around the mills. Many boys would either drop out of high school or graduate then get a job in one of the mills.
  5. Generations of families worked in the mills. If you take my family as an example, both my great-grandfather and grandfather worked at Copperweld and I had uncles who worked at National Tube and Bucyrus-Erie.
  6. In the late 70’s and early 80’s, the industry collapsed. Most of these mills shut down. Unemployment skyrocketed in the region, and many families had to leave the area.
  7. When I’ve tried to explain how important the steel industry was in the Pittsburgh area, many people don’t understand how intertwined the mills were with life in the region. This map is a way of trying to explain this.

Limitations

  1. These were not the only steel mills in the Pittsburgh area. There were mills further south along the Mon River and also along the Allegheny River north of the city. However, I wanted to focus on this region because of the concentration of mills here.
  2. I’ve tried to include a photo of each mill. I haven’t been able to find photos for all of them.
  3. Finding geographical coordinates for buildings that no longer exist, and, in some cases, haven’t existed for decades was a challenge.

Map of the Mon Valley in Allegheny County

  1. General Motors Pittsburgh or Pittsburgh Metal

    This plant was located in Dravosburg, Pennsylvania and was known locally as "Fisher Body". It specialized in making body parts for General Motors cars.

    This plant opened in 1948 and closed in 2006. It has since been torn down.

    Peak Employment: 3,500 people.

  2. Clairton Coke Works

    This plant is located in Clairton, and is still open, and part of US Steel's Mon Valley Works. It takes coal, and processes it, turning it into coke, which burns hotter.

    Current employment for all three mills in the Mon Valley Works total is approximately 3,000

    US Steel Clairton Works, Clairton PA (8900609816)

  3. Copperweld

    This plant, which was known as Copperweld Steel at one point, was located in Glassport.

    It produced, among other things, copper wiring, copper conductors, and reinforcement for embankments and walls in flood control. In 1976, it was bought by a French company, Societe Imetal.

    Copperwled opened in Glassport in 1927 and closed in 1983. Its office building has sicne been torn down and a pharmacy is now on that property. The factory space is now a small business incubator.

    Peak Employment: 800 people

  4. Bucyrus-Erie

    This plant was also located in Glassport. It was originally the Pittsburgh Steel Foundry, or just the Foundry. This mill produced casting of various sizes. It also changed hands a few times. In 1974, the mill was bought by Bucyrus-Erie. At this point, the plant continued to produce casting, but those casting were now primarily for the fossil fuel industries, as the United States was teying to increase production of those after the The Oil Embargo of 1973-4.

    This plan began operations as the Pittsburgh Steel Foundry in 1899. After a merger, it changed its name to Pittron in 1927. It was bought by Bucyrus-Erie in 1974. It closed in 1981. It has since been torn down.

    Peak Employment: 1,000 people

  5. National Tube Works

    The Tube Works was a US Steel plant, located in McKeesport. As the name implies, it specialized in making tubes. It was also called Tube City.

    Tube City opened in 1902 and closed in 1984. Part of this space is a small business incubator now.

    Peak Employment: 7,000 people.

    National Tube Works, Furnaces (NBY 4662)

  6. Irvin Works

    The Irvin Works is located in West Mifflin. It is still open, and part of the Mon Valley Works.

    Current employment for all three mills in the Mon Valley Works total is approximately 3,000

    President Obama Irvin Plant MyRA

  7. Duquesne Works

    This plant was located in Duquesne. Originally, it specialized in building rails, primarily for railroads, but later became a pipe mill. Dorothy 6, the world's largest blast furnace was located here.

    The mill is now a small business incubator.

    This plant opened in 1889, and closed in 1984.

    Peak Employment: 8,000

    GENERAL SOUTHEASTERN VIEW OF CENTRAL BOILER HOUSE. - U.S. Steel Duquesne Works, Fuel and Utilities Plant, Along Monongahela River, Duquesne, Allegheny County, PA HAER PA,2-DUQU,3E-23

  8. Edgar Thomson Steel Works

    This plant is located in Braddock. It is still open, and part of the Mon Valley Works.

    Current employment for all three mills in the Mon Valley Works total is approximately 3,000

    Edgar Thomson

  9. Homestead Works

    This plant was a US Steel plant in Homestead.

    The plant was mostly torn down, and The Waterfront, a large outdoor shopping and entertiainment venue, opened in 1999.

    This plant opened in 1882 and closed in 1986.

    Peak employment: 15,000

    Homestead Steel Works, Homestead, Pa. (det.4a55014)

  10. South Side Works

    South Side Works was a J&L Steel plant in the South Side neighborhood of Pittsburgh. This plant was also called the "Eliza Works",

    This area has been converted into a sports medicine complex, entertainment, and office buildings.

    This plant opened in 1893 and closed in 1986.

    Peak employment -- this is combined with the Hazelwood Works across the Mon River -- 12,000

    NORTH ELEVATION OF -2 OPEN HEARTH. FOREGROUND- SLAG DOCK, LOOKING SW. - Jones and Laughlin Steel Corporation, Pittsburgh Works, Morgan Billet Mill Engine, 550 feet north of East HAER PA,2-PITBU,62A-10

  11. J&L Plant

    This plant was located in the Hazelwood neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Yes, South Side Works was also a J&L plant, but this one was called the J&L Plant. If it had a different name, I have not been able to find it.

    This area is now called Hazelwood Green, and plans are being made for its redevelopment.

    This plant opened in 1893 and closed in 1997.

    Peak employment -- this is combined with the South Side Works across the Mon River -- 12,000

    POLLUTANTS COMING FROM A COKE PLANT OWNED BY THE JONES AND LAUGHLIN STEEL CORPORATION AT HAZELWOOD, PENNSYLVANIA, A... - NARA - 557225

Sources

  1. The McKeesport Heritage Center
  2. Historic Pittsburgh
  3. Rivers of Steel, part of the Steel Industry Heritage Corporation
  4. US Steel's Mon Valley Works Page
  5. A Brief History of Bucyrus-Erie
  6. Explore PA History's website.
  7. Hazelwood Green's website.
  8. William Serrin's The Glory and Tragedy of an American Steel Town, Times Books, 1992
  9. Stephen R. Lease McKeesport and Glassport: Changes Through the Years, an Ethnographic Research Project for the Steel Industry Heritage Corporation