Description: This color photograph documents the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company Skelp Mill. Skelp refers to the flat plate (strip of steel) that is rolled up lengthwise to form pipe or tube by welding or riveting the edges together. The skelp mill forms the flat skelp into the desired shape for welding. This 8" by 10" (20.32 by 25.4 cm) image is part of a larger collection of photographs that document the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company operations. In November 1900, a group of 55 Youngstown citizens, led by James A. Campbell, raised $600,000 in capital to create the Youngstown Iron Sheet and Tube Company. Land was purchased along the Mahoning River approximately three miles east of downtown. In 1902, the mill opened for production. Spectacular growth marked the company's second decade, some of it spurred by the demand for steel caused by World War I. In 1923, YS&T purchased the Brier Hill Steel Company of Youngstown and the Steel and Tube Company of America of East Chicago. During the 1930s the company survived the Great Depression and the 1937 "Little Steel" strike to emerge as a leading steel producer. In the 1960s, YS&T began to experience a decline. The company merged with the Lykes Corporation in 1969 and LTV Corporation in 1979, at which time all Youngstown operations were phased out. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1627_1911387_005
Subjects: Business and Labor; Geography and Natural Resources; Steel industry; Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company; Furnaces
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph depicts workers camping at the Republic Steel Corporation's Warren Plant during the 1937 ""Little Steel"" Strike. The photograph shows the tent camp near the Stainless Department. This 4.5"" by 6.5"" (11.43 by 16.5 cm) photograph is part of a scrapbook maintained by the Republic Steel Corporation documenting events at its Warren Plant during the strike. The scrapbook is labeled Miscellaneous Communications, Posters and Pictures Relating to the C.I.O. Strike of the Warren Plant of the Republic Steel Corporation, Summer 1937, Vol. III. In June 1936 the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel, and Tin Workers and the Committee for Industrial Organization (C.I.O.) agreed to a joint effort to organize the steel industry. This led to the formation of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (S.W.O.C.). Soon after the first representatives from the S.W.O.C. arrived in the Mahoning Valley to begin their organizing efforts. On March 26, 1937 the organizing committee signed a contract with U.S. Steel, the nation's largest steel producer. Six weeks later the second largest steel company in the country, Jones & Laughlin, followed the example of U.S. Steel. Following these victories the S.W.O.C. increased its efforts at reaching agreements with the smaller companies known as the ""Little Steel"" companies: Republic Steel, Inland Steel, and Youngstown Sheet and Tube. Talks between the organizing committee and the steel companies broke down and on May 26, 1937 approximately 25,000 Mahoning Valley steelworkers walked off their jobs from Republic Steel and Youngstown Sheet and Tube. Most of the mills shut down with the start of the strike. However, Republic Steel kept their Warren and Niles plants open using non-striking steelworkers. This led to a number of violent confrontations outside the mills. With no end to the strike in sight, Youngstown Sheet and Tube and Republic Steel announced on June 21 that the mills will be re-opened for those workers wanted to return to work. Fearing the violence that would follow attempts to re-open the plants, Ohio Governor Martin Davey ordered National Guard troops to the Mahoning Valley and on June 22 nearly 2,000 National Guardsmen arrived in Youngstown and Warren. The arrival of the National Guard signaled the beginning of the end of the strike. On June 25 striking steelworkers began returning to work under the protection of the National Guard. The steel companies also began hiring new workers to replace those who remained on strike. Soon the mills were running at near full capacity and most of the striking steelworkers had returned to their jobs. On July 6 the National Guard reduced its presence in the Mahoning Valley and the strike was effectively over. The C.I.O. and S.W.O.C. had suffered their first defeat in their efforts to organize the steelworkers; not until 1941 did Republic Steel and Youngstown Sheet and Tube sign agreements recognizing the union. View on Ohio Memory.
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Subjects: Business and Labor; Strikes; Steel industry; Congress of Industrial Organizations (U.S.); Labor unions; Tents
Places: Niles (Ohio); Warren (Ohio); Trumbull County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 4"" by 6.5"" (10.16 by 16.5 cm) photograph was taken at the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company in East Youngstown. The city was later renamed Campbell and the mill became the Campbell Works of the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company. This image documents the extent and damage from the Mahoning River flood of March 1913. In late March of 1913, an unusually heavy rainstorm moved into Ohio. It rained steadily for five days and the streams all over Ohio rose rapidly. By the third day of the downpour, levees were overtopped and many towns suffered disastrous flooding. Great fires that raged unchecked added to the destruction and the loss of life. When the flood waters receded, tons of mud and debris covered the streets, homes, businesses and factories. The death toll stood at 361. Property damages were well over $100,000,000 and 65,000 were forced to temporarily leave their homes. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1639_1867296_001
Subjects: Business and Labor; Climate and Weather; Floods; Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company; Steel industry; Mahoning River (Ohio and Pa.)
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); East Youngstown (Ohio); Campbell (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: These photographs, taken between July 31 and August 2, 1939, were compiled in a scrapbook as a report to the Ohio adjutant general by two National Guard officers, Brigadier General L. S. Conelly and Captain L. J. Abele. The officers were sent to the Fisher Body Plant in Cleveland as observers for the Ohio National Guard during the 1939 strike at the plant. The back of each photograph is labeled with a number and a brief caption. Images 2 and 57 include Eliot Ness, who was Cleveland's director of public safety at the time of the strike. Before coming to Cleveland, Ness successfully battled mobster Al Capone in Chicago. His book, The Untouchables, was published in 1957. Other images in this collection include confrontations between police and strikers, non-striking workers inside the plant and police and fire officials at the scene. The photographs measure 6" x 8" (15.24 x 20.32 cm). Fisher Body Plant opened in 1921 to build car bodies for the Cleveland Automobile Company and the Chandler Motor Car Company. It became a division of General Motors (GM) in 1926. Several major strikes occurred in the automobile industry in the 1930s, as workers were asked to work for less and less due to the effects of the Great Depression. In 1937, workers at the Fisher Body Plant began a sit-down strike that spread to the GM factory in Michigan. The strike ended when GM agreed to recognize the United Auto Workers. During World War II the Fisher Body plant made parts for tanks, guns and airplanes. The plant closed in 1982. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1526_4400787_003
Subjects: Ohio Government; Military Ohio; Business and Labor; Strikes; Factories; Automobile industry workers; International Union, United Automobile Workers of America (CIO); Ohio. National Guard
Places: Cleveland (Ohio); Cuyahoga County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 7.6"" by 9.2"" (19.30 by 23.37 cm) photograph shows a pig yard and blast furnace in Youngstown, Ohio around the turn of the century. It was likely a property of the Republic Iron and Steel Company (later called Republic Steel Company), which was organized in 1899 and moved its headquarters to Youngstown in 1911. The company was a vital economic force in the Mahoning Valley and a leading producer of steel in the United States. A blast furnace is used in the smelting process to remove impurities from iron ore and produce pig iron, which is then used to make steel. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om326_763403_001
Subjects: Business and Labor; Steel industry; Furnaces
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 8"" x 10"" (20.32 by 25.40 cm) photograph depicts the 1913 flood of the Mahoning River. This image shows the Youngstown Sheet & Tube mill, including railroad cars and mill buildings surrounded by flood waters. In late March 1913, an unusually heavy rainstorm moved into Ohio. It rained steadily for five days and the streams all over Ohio rose rapidly. By the third day of the downpour, levees were overtopped and many towns suffered disastrous flooding. Great fires that raged unchecked added to the destruction and the loss of life. When the flood waters receded, tons of mud and debris covered the streets, homes, businesses and factories. The death toll stood at 361. Property damages were well over $100,000,000 and 65,000 were forced to temporarily leave their homes. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1621_1867206_002
Subjects: Business and Labor; Climate and Weather; Floods; Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company; Mahoning River (Ohio and Pa.)
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 8"" by 10"" (20.32 by 25.4 cm) photograph depicts company housing on Jackson Street in East Youngstown, later renamed Campbell. It documents company efforts to provide adequate housing for workers following labor unrest in 1916. In 1917 the Mahoning Valley's leading steel companies began constructing housing for their employees to rent or own in response to shortages of decent, affordable housing. In the aftermath of the 1916 steel strike and riot (when several blocks of East Youngstown were burned to the ground) the steel companies hoped that offering steelworkers the chance to rent or own a home would promote stability within the workplace and the community. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1621_1867212_001
Subjects: Business and Labor; Labor housing; Houses; Steel industry
Places: East Youngstown (Ohio); Campbell (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph depicts the continuous weld mill in Youngstown. This 8" by 10" (20.32 by 25.4 cm) image is part of a larger collection of photographs that document the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company operations. In November 1900, a group of 55 Youngstown citizens, led by James A. Campbell, raised $600,000 in capital to create the Youngstown Iron Sheet and Tube Company. Land was purchased along the Mahoning River approximately three miles east of downtown. In 1902, the mill opened for production. Spectacular growth marked the company's second decade, some of it spurred by the demand for steel caused by World War I. In 1923, YS&T purchased the Brier Hill Steel Company of Youngstown and the Steel and Tube Company of America of East Chicago. During the 1930s the company survived the Great Depression and the 1937 "Little Steel" strike to emerge as a leading steel producer. In the 1960s, YS&T began to experience a decline. The company merged with the Lykes Corporation in 1969 and LTV Corporation in 1979, at which time all Youngstown operations were phased out. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1627_1911375_008
Subjects: Business and Labor; Geography and Natural Resources; Steel industry; Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company; Furnaces
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 8"" by 10"" (20.32 by 25.4 cm) photograph depicts the demolition of U.S. Steel blast furnaces in 1984, which defined the end of an era in Youngstown. For much of its history, U.S. Steel was the leading steel manufacturer in the world, yet the Ohio Works and McDonald Mills were closed in 1980 due to financial difficulties. Efforts were made to reopen the mills as worker-owned facilities, which led to a lawsuit aimed at halting demolition of the plant. The case was lost and the Ohio Works were razed soon afterwards. In 1986 U.S. Steel reorganized and was renamed USX Corporation. Steel production now comprises about 25% of its operations. Financier John Pierpont Morgan formed the United States Steel Company in 1901. It comprised 8 major companies among which were American Tin Plate Company, American Steel and Wire Company, National Tube Company, American Steel Sheet Company, Carnegie Company, Federal Steel Company and National Steel Company. The company purchased the Youngstown plant of the Ohio Steel Company, which had been founded in 1892 and bought by the National Steel Company a few years later. The plant was renamed the Ohio Works in 1950. The Upper Union Mills have also changed hands numerous times. The mill was consolidated with Youngstown Iron Company and run as the Union Iron & Steel Company in 1892. In 1899 the Lower Union and Upper Union Mills were sold to National Steel Company, and operated under name of American Steel Hoop Company. These were later sold to Carnegie Steel Company, which became a subsidiary of U.S. Steel. The McDonald mills were constructed during World War I. The town of McDonald was constructed at the same time as the plant to house the workers and their families. A new company called McDonald Steel reopened part of the McDonald Mills, making specialty steel shapes for bridges and truck tire rims. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1638_1867290_001
Subjects: Business and Labor; Steel industry; Furnaces; United States Steel Corporation; Demolition
Places: Hubbard (Ohio); Trumbull County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph depicts a picket station at the Republic Steel Corporation's Warren Plant during the 1937 ""Little Steel"" Strike. During the strike, pickets had various outposts throughout the area. This picket station was located on South Main Street opposite the coke plant. The 4.5"" by 6.5"" (11.43 by 16.5 cm) photograph is part of a scrapbook maintained by the Republic Steel Corporation documenting events at its Warren Plant during the strike. The scrapbook is labeled Miscellaneous Communications, Posters and Pictures Relating to the C.I.O. Strike of the Warren Plant of the Republic Steel Corporation, Summer 1937, Vol. III. In June 1936 the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel, and Tin Workers and the Committee for Industrial Organization (C.I.O.) agreed to a joint effort to organize the steel industry. This led to the formation of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (S.W.O.C.). Soon after the first representatives from the S.W.O.C. arrived in the Mahoning Valley to begin their organizing efforts. On March 26, 1937 the organizing committee signed a contract with U.S. Steel, the nation's largest steel producer. Six weeks later the second largest steel company in the country, Jones & Laughlin, followed the example of U.S. Steel. Following these victories the S.W.O.C. increased its efforts at reaching agreements with the smaller companies known as the ""Little Steel"" companies: Republic Steel, Inland Steel, and Youngstown Sheet and Tube. Talks between the organizing committee and the steel companies broke down and on May 26, 1937 approximately 25,000 Mahoning Valley steelworkers walked off their jobs from Republic Steel and Youngstown Sheet and Tube. Most of the mills shut down with the start of the strike. However, Republic Steel kept their Warren and Niles plants open using non-striking steelworkers. This led to a number of violent confrontations outside the mills. With no end to the strike in sight, Youngstown Sheet and Tube and Republic Steel announced on June 21 that the mills will be re-opened for those workers wanted to return to work. Fearing the violence that would follow attempts to re-open the plants, Ohio Governor Martin Davey ordered National Guard troops to the Mahoning Valley and on June 22 nearly 2,000 National Guardsmen arrived in Youngstown and Warren. The arrival of the National Guard signaled the beginning of the end of the strike. On June 25 striking steelworkers began returning to work under the protection of the National Guard. The steel companies also began hiring new workers to replace those who remained on strike. Soon the mills were running at near full capacity and most of the striking steelworkers had returned to their jobs. On July 6 the National Guard reduced its presence in the Mahoning Valley and the strike was effectively over. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID:
Subjects: Business and Labor; Strikes; Steel industry; Congress of Industrial Organizations (U.S.); Labor unions
Places: Niles (Ohio); Warren (Ohio); Trumbull County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 8"" by 10"" (20.32 by 25.4 cm) photograph depicts Republic Steel Blast Furnace, circa 1942, at the peak of production during World War II. The Republic Iron and Steel Company was organized in 1899, establishing its headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. In 1905 the company moved its headquarters to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and in 1911 transferred them to Youngstown, Ohio. The company became the Republic Steel Corporation in 1930 and in 1936 moved to Cleveland, Ohio. Until the decline of the steel industry in the 1970s and early 1980s, Republic was a vital economic force in the Mahoning Valley area. Nationally, the company was a mainstay of steel production in the United States, producing steel used by the American automobile, defense, and air industries. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, at a time when steel companies across the country were closing plants, the company substantially reduced its operations in the vicinity of Youngstown. In 1983 LTV bought Republic Steel, making the former company the nation's second largest steel-making concern. View on Ohio Memory.
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Subjects: Business and Labor; Furnaces; Steel industry; Republic Steel Corporation
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 8" by 10" (20.32 by 25.4 cm) image depicts Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company's research laboratory during the 1920s. At the time the company had research laboratories located in the coke plant, open-hearth department, Bessemer department, and the main office building. These labs tested the quality of the raw materials before they were used to make steel and the finished steel before it was shipped. They also analyzed samples to develop the proper composition of steel and iron needed to meet the special demands of customers. In addition, the labs monitored the quality of water brought into the plant for use as drinking water and in the manufacturing process. In 1921, researchers processed about 12,000 samples per month, providing approximately 40,000 separate results. In 1924 the company's research labs were renamed the metallurgy department. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1637_1911244_005
Subjects: Business and Labor; Science and Technology; Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company; Steel industry; Laboratories; Research facilities
Places: Youngstown (Ohio); Mahoning County (Ohio)