Frederick J. Griffiths (December 11, 1878 - October 17, 1951) was an early, English-born engineer in the

Stark County, Ohio Stark County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 374,853. Its county seat is Canton. The county was created in 1808 and organized the next year. It is named for John Stark, an officer in th ...

steel industry. He is best known for working with

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to develop a

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alloy steel in order to produce lighter-weight, stronger automobiles. When the Massillon Rolling Mill Company merged into the Central Steel Company in June 1914, Griffiths resigned as a chemist at Canton's United Steel Company to become Central's vice president and superintendent. He then became the president of the company. His daughter, Gertrude, lit the first open hearth furnace at the new Central Steel Company in 1915. In 1917, Griffith's was named to the Massillon Steel Casting Company board of directors. The company's earliest orders came from the

United States military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

for production of the steel-rated equipment and supplies needed for

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. By 1919, 3 of his 5 brothers were all superintendents at Central Steel. In 1920, Griffiths was anticipated by many in

Massillon, Ohio Massillon is a city in Stark County, Ohio, Stark County in the U.S. state of Ohio, approximately west of Canton, Ohio, Canton, south of Akron, and south of Cleveland. The population was 32,146 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Mass ...

to purchase the Massillon Tigers, of the Ohio League and take the team into the new

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. However he never attended a meeting regarding the league or club and the Tigers soon folded. When Central Steel became part of Central Alloy Steel Company, Griffiths became chairman of its board of trustees. However when that firm was absorbed by the

Republic Steel Corporation Republic Steel is an American steel manufacturer that was once the country's third largest steel producer. It was founded as the Republic Iron and Steel Company in Youngstown, Ohio in 1899. After rising to prominence during the early 20th Centu ...

, he was assigned the presidency of the Republic Research Corporation. Not wanting to conduct research, Griffth's left Republic to join the Timken Company.

References

Patrons of St. Timothy's Episcopal Church: Fred J. Griffiths
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Griffiths, F.J. 1878 births 1951 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople People from Massillon, Ohio English emigrants to the United States American steel industry businesspeople