Description: Dated ca. 1935, this aerial photograph shows the American Rolling Mill Company's Central Works, Armco Research facilities. The buildings shown here were destroyed in a terrible explosion on December 27, 1935, resulting in $75,000 in loss. Armco was originally a Cincinnati steel roofing company, and moved to Middletown in 1901 to produce rolled steel sheets. In 1904, a shop committee, early predecessor to a trade union, was established by the plant's workers. A 1921 innovation in coiling sheet steel led to a boom in production; the company became Armco Inc. in 1978, and merged with AK Steel in 1999. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F09_010_1
Subjects: American Rolling Mill Company; Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Industries--Ohio--Butler County; Factories--History; United States. Work Projects Administration (Ohio)
Places: Middletown(Ohio); Butler county(Ohio); Warren county(Ohio)
 

Description: Dated to the 1930s or 1940s, this aerial photograph shows Armco East Side Works in Middletown, Ohio. Armco was born a Cincinnati steel roofing company, and moved to Middletown in 1901 to produce rolled steel sheets. In 1904, the plant's workers established a shop committee, an early predecessor to a trade union. A 1921 innovation in coiling sheet steel led to a boom in production; the company became Armco Inc. in 1978, and merged with AK Steel in 1999. A note on the photograph's reverse reads "A new wide-cold-reduction Mill at East Works-Armco, nearing completion, representing investment of approx. four million dollars, Note the private tracks for Railway transportation to both mills. A complete History of Armco ready for mailing May 1, 1936. Armco East Side Works. Middletown, Ohio." This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F12_013_1
Subjects: American Rolling Mill Company; Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Industries--Ohio--Butler County; Factories--History; United States. Work Projects Administration (Ohio)
Places: Middletown(Ohio); Butler county(Ohio); Warren county(Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the exterior of the Republic Steel plant in Warren, Ohio. Republic Steel Corporation was founded in 1899 in Youngstown, Ohio. The firm was originally known as Republic Iron and Steel Company. In 1927, Cyrus Eaton purchased a majority of the stock in the Republic Steel Company. Under Eaton's leadership, the Republic Steel Company expanded its manufacturing holdings to include plants in Massillon, Elyria, Canton, Cleveland, and Warren, Ohio. The company ceased to exist in 1984 when it merged with the Jones and Laughlin Steel Company to create LTV Steel. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F07_008_1
Subjects: Republic Steel Corporation; Factories; Industries--Ohio; Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works;
Places: Warren (Ohio); Trumbull County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated 1930-1943, this photograph shows a worker silhouetted against white-hot molten metal being poured from a blast furnace into a ladle. This could be one of any number of steel mills in Ohio. In the early nineteenth century, there were a number of furnaces in Ohio that processed iron. These small industries were made possible by local iron ore deposits in southern and eastern Ohio. In addition, some parts of Ohio also had coal deposits that could be used to fuel furnaces. Because of their proximity to the state's iron manufacturing, by the second half of the nineteenth century communities such as Cleveland, Akron, Canton, and Youngstown had begun to emerge as major industrial cities. Railroads also encouraged the growth of the iron industry. After the American Civil War (1861-1865), iron manufacturers in Ohio began to introduce new processes to refine iron ore. The resulting product was steel, which was much stronger and more versatile than iron. Because Ohio companies such as the Otis Steel Company were quick to adopt new technology, Ohio became the second largest producer of steel in the nation by the 1890s. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the rapid growth of some steel companies led to a wave of mergers that created big businesses like the United States Steel Company (U.S. Steel), Republic Iron and Steel Corporation, and Youngstown Steel and Tube Company. Very often, smaller companies that had produced either iron or steel since the early 1800s were taken over or driven out of business because they were unable to compete with the large corporations. The developments in the steel industry helped to encourage construction of large buildings, such as skyscrapers, as well as bridges and other projects. The automobile industry also contributed to the growth of the steel industry in the early decades of the twentieth century. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F07_011_1
Subjects: Industries--Ohio; Factories; Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Blast furnaces--United States; Works Progress Administration of Ohio (U.S.)
Places: Ohio
 

Description: Dated 1930-1943, this photograph shows a worker silhouetted against white-hot molten metal being poured from a blast furnace into a ladle. This could be one of any number of steel mills in Ohio. In the early nineteenth century, there were a number of furnaces in Ohio that processed iron. These small industries were made possible by local iron ore deposits in southern and eastern Ohio. In addition, some parts of Ohio also had coal deposits that could be used to fuel furnaces. Because of their proximity to the state's iron manufacturing, by the second half of the nineteenth century communities such as Cleveland, Akron, Canton, and Youngstown had begun to emerge as major industrial cities. Railroads also encouraged the growth of the iron industry. After the American Civil War (1861-1865), iron manufacturers in Ohio began to introduce new processes to refine iron ore. The resulting product was steel, which was much stronger and more versatile than iron. Because Ohio companies such as the Otis Steel Company were quick to adopt new technology, Ohio became the second largest producer of steel in the nation by the 1890s. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the rapid growth of some steel companies led to a wave of mergers that created big businesses like the United States Steel Company (U.S. Steel), Republic Iron and Steel Corporation, and Youngstown Steel and Tube Company. Very often, smaller companies that had produced either iron or steel since the early 1800s were taken over or driven out of business because they were unable to compete with the large corporations. The developments in the steel industry helped to encourage construction of large buildings, such as skyscrapers, as well as bridges and other projects. The automobile industry also contributed to the growth of the steel industry in the early decades of the twentieth century. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F07_012_1
Subjects: Industries--Ohio; Factories; Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Blast furnaces--United States
Places: Ohio
 

Description: Interior photograph taken at Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company, which was established in Youngstown, Ohio, in 1900. Starting with capital of $600,000, the company became one of the largest steel manufacturers in the world. The Briar Hill Steel Company of Youngstown was purchased in 1923, along with The Steel and Tube Company of America in East Chicago and Indiana Harbor, Indiana, making it the fifth-largest steel manufacturer in the United States. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F07_013_1
Subjects: Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company; Industries--Ohio; Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Factories
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio); Trumbull County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads: "Warren - Trumbull Co. Republic Steel Corp. District 6 files." Republic Steel Corporation was founded in 1899 in Youngstown, Ohio. The firm was originally known as Republic Iron and Steel Company. For the company's first three decades of existence, it prospered, as Ohio was one of the leading industrialist states of the period. In 1927, Cyrus Eaton purchased a majority of the stock in the Republic Steel Company. At the same time, Eaton also purchased stock in other companies. He hoped to unite these companies together to compete with the U.S. Steel Company—the largest steel manufacturer in the United States. Under Eaton's leadership, the Republic Steel Company expanded its manufacturing holdings to include plants in Massillon, Elyria, Canton, Cleveland, and Warren, Ohio. Thanks to Eaton's efforts, the Republic Steel Company emerged as the third largest steel producer in the United States. The Republic Steel Company, like many other businesses, faced an economic downturn during the Great Depression. The firm, unlikely many others, remained in operation and actually expanded its holdings by purchasing smaller steel companies as they went bankrupt. Tom Girdler now headed the company, and under his leadership, the firm's corporate headquarters moved to Cleveland. During the 1930s, the Republic Steel Company, as well as many other steel mills, faced tensions as its steel workers, wanting to unionize, started a strike over low wages and poor working conditions. While Republic Steel proved successful in the “Little Steel Strike of 1937,” with the outbreak of World War II, the firm quickly permitted unions in its mills so that the firm could acquire lucrative government contracts. The company prospered throughout the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, but competition from foreign steel, higher wages, and new environmental codes began to hurt the firm. The situation continued to worsen for the Republic Steel Company during the 1980s, and in 1984, the company merged with Jones and Laughlin to create LTV Steel. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F03_044_001
Subjects: Industries--Ohio; Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Republic Steel Corporation; Republic Iron & Steel Company
Places: Ohio
 

Description: Reverse reads "Steel Mills, Cleveland - Ohio State Dept. of Visual Education." This photograph depicts an exterior view of a steel mill in Cleveland. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F08_028_1
Subjects: Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Industries--Ohio; Factories--History; United States. Work Projects Administration (Ohio)
Places: Cleveland (Ohio); Cuyahoga County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph of a worker watching a bull ladle in front of cupola in an unidentified Ohio steel mill. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F08_030_1
Subjects: Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Industries--Ohio; Factories--History; United States. Work Projects Administration (Ohio)
Places: (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads ""Youngstown Sheet & Tube. Credit W.A. Bartz." This photograph depicts an external view of the The Youngstown Iron Sheet and Tube Company, based in Youngstown, Ohio. It was created by George D. Wick and James A. Campbell along with other local investors who wanted to maintain significant levels of local ownership within the city's manufacturing sector, on November 23, 1900. In 1952, during the Korean War, President Harry S. Truman attempted to seize United States steel mills in order to avert a strike. This led to the U.S. Supreme Court decision of Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company v. Sawyer, commonly referred to as The Steel Seizure Case. The decision limited the power of the President of the United States to seize private property in the absence of either specifically enumerated authority under Article Two of the United States Constitution or statutory authority conferred on him by Congress. Youngstown Sheet and Tube abruptly closed on September 19, 1977. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F08_031_1
Subjects: Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Industries--Ohio--Youngstown; Factories--History; United States. Work Projects Administration (Ohio); Bartz, W.
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads ""Youngstown Sheet & Tube. Credit W.A. Bartz." This photograph depicts an internall view of the The Youngstown Iron Sheet and Tube Company, based in Youngstown, Ohio. It was created by George D. Wick and James A. Campbell along with other local investors who wanted to maintain significant levels of local ownership within the city's manufacturing sector, on November 23, 1900. In 1952, during the Korean War, President Harry S. Truman attempted to seize United States steel mills in order to avert a strike. This led to the U.S. Supreme Court decision of Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company v. Sawyer, commonly referred to as The Steel Seizure Case. The decision limited the power of the President of the United States to seize private property in the absence of either specifically enumerated authority under Article Two of the United States Constitution or statutory authority conferred on him by Congress. Youngstown Sheet and Tube abruptly closed on September 19, 1977, a day the residents called "Black Monday". View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F08_033_1
Subjects: Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Industries--Ohio--Youngstown; Factories--History; United States. Work Projects Administration (Ohio); Bartz, W.
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads "Youngstown Sheet & Tube. Credit W.A. Bartz." This photograph depicts molten iron being poured into a barrel at the The Youngstown Iron Sheet and Tube Company, based in Youngstown, Ohio. This company was one of the largest steel manufacturers in the world. It was created by George D. Wick and James A. Campbell along with other local investors who wanted to maintain significant levels of local ownership within the city's manufacturing sector, on November 23, 1900. In 1952, during the Korean War, President Harry S. Truman attempted to seize United States steel mills in order to avert a strike. This led to the U.S. Supreme Court decision of Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company v. Sawyer, commonly referred to as The Steel Seizure Case. The decision limited the power of the President of the United States to seize private property in the absence of either specifically enumerated authority under Article Two of the United States Constitution or statutory authority conferred on him by Congress. Youngstown Sheet and Tube abruptly closed on September 19, 1977, a day the residents called "Black Monday". View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F08_035_1
Subjects: Steel-works--Ohio--Pictorial works; Industries--Ohio--Youngstown; Factories--History; United States. Work Projects Administration (Ohio); Bartz, W.
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)