Homestead Steel Works was a large

steel works A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finis ...

located on the

Monongahela River The Monongahela River ( , )—often referred to locally as the Mon ()—is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 river on the Allegheny Plateau in North Cen ...

Homestead, Pennsylvania Homestead is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA, in the Monongahela River valley southeast of downtown Pittsburgh and directly across the river from the city limit line. The borough is known for the Homestead Strike of 1892, an imp ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The company developed in the nineteenth century as an extensive plant served by tributary coal and iron fields, a railway long, and a line of lake steamships. The works was also the site of one of the more serious labor disputes in U.S. history, which became known as the

Homestead strike The Homestead strike, also known as the Homestead steel strike, Homestead massacre, or Battle of Homestead, was an industrial lockout and strike that began on July 1, 1892, culminating in a battle in which strikers defeated private security agent ...

of 1892.

History

The steel works were first constructed in 1881.

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

, (a Scottish emigrant), bought the 2 year old Homestead Steel Works in 1883, and integrated it into his

Carnegie Steel Company Carnegie Steel Company was a steel-producing company primarily created by Andrew Carnegie and several close associates to manage businesses at steel mills in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area in the late 19th century. The company was forme ...

. For many years, the Homestead Works was the largest steel mill in the world and the most productive of the Mon Valley's many mills. A series of industrial disputes over wages, working hours and contracts occurred in the early years of the works, leading to the

, an industrial

lockout Lockout may refer to: * Lockout (industry), a type of work stoppage **Dublin Lockout, a major industrial dispute between approximately 20,000 workers and 300 employers 1913 - 1914 * Lockout (sports), lockout in sports leagues **MLB lockout, lock ...

and

strike Strike may refer to: People * Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...

which began on June 30, 1892, culminating in a battle between strikers and private security agents on July 6, 1892. The battle was one of the most violent disputes in U.S. labor history and the final result was a major defeat for the union and a setback for their efforts to unionize steelworkers. In 1896, Carnegie built the

Carnegie Library of Homestead The Carnegie Library of Homestead is a public library founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1898. It is one of 2,509 Carnegie libraries worldwide; 1,689 built in the United States. It was the sixth library commissioned by Carnegie in the U.S. and the s ...

in nearby Munhall as part of concessions to the striking workers. (This however has never been validated. Carnegie had the plans drawn up in the late 1880s, and run-ins with the Union bosses kept him from actually building it.) In 1901, Carnegie sold his operations to

U.S. Steel United States Steel Corporation, more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an American integrated steel producer headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with production operations primarily in the United States of America and in severa ...

. On January 6, 1906 it was announced that the company would undergo upgrades and expansions worth seven million dollars ($ today.) The workforce peaked at 15,000 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. William J. Gaughan was a Senior Designer of Operations Planning and Control at the company who developed computer systems to aid in automation of various operations. Throughout his management career, Gaughan had developed an interest in the history of Homestead Steel Works and began to collect photos and pamphlets regarding the company. The plant closed in 1986 because of a severe downturn in the domestic steel industry, from which the industry still hasn't recovered. Gantry Crane 1

A few remnants of the steel works were not destroyed, including twelve smokestacks in the middle of the Waterfront development.Battle of Homestead Foundation
/ref> As of its opening in 1999, the land is partially occupied by

The Waterfront The Waterfront is a super-regional open air shopping mall spanning the three boroughs of Homestead, West Homestead, and Munhall near Pittsburgh. The shopping mall sits on land once occupied by U.S. Steel's Homestead Steel Works plant, which c ...

, an outdoor shopping center.

References

External links

''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' retrospectiveTravel Channel video 1Travel Channel video 2Images from Historic Pittsburgh
* — ''index page + history.'' ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** {{Authority control Ironworks and steel mills in Pennsylvania Homestead, Pennsylvania Manufacturing companies based in Pennsylvania Buildings and structures in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Industrial buildings and structures in Pennsylvania Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area Andrew Carnegie U.S. Steel Manufacturing companies established in 1881 Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1986 1881 establishments in Pennsylvania 1986 establishments in Pennsylvania Defunct companies based in Pennsylvania Historic American Engineering Record in Pennsylvania

History

See also

References

External links