History of Steel Industry From 1875-1920 in Great Lakes Region Term Paper

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(Macdonagh-Dumler and Pebbles et al. 1-14)

The Marquette Range, which consisted of huge deposits of high quality iron ore, was discovered in the year 1844, the operations were initiated in the year 1846. Other ranges that were opened by the year 1910, included the Menominee, Gogebic, Vermilion, Cuyuna, and, the Mesabi range in Minnesota, in the year 1892. (Macdonagh-Dumler and Pebbles et al. 1-14)

In the year 1844 the first great deposits of united iron ore were discovered in the region of great lakes by the surveyors of the government of America. By the era of 1850s these deposits were exploited in an aggressive manner by the government. (Macdonagh-Dumler and Pebbles et al. 1-14)

It was established that the Great Lakes region would become the center of the American iron and steel industry because of the following factors; availability of high quality iron ore in abundance in the Great Lakes region, availability of anthracite in Pennsylvania, and the availability of cheap and inexpensive transport on the Great Lakes. (Macdonagh-Dumler and Pebbles et al. 1-14)

The iron ore that was extracted from the region of Great Lakes was exported through the lakes, in an inexpensive manner, to a number of ports including Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Erie and Buffalo. This iron ore was then shipped by rail to the steel mills. In addition to that, coal was available in abundance in the regions of Pennsylvania and Ohio. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

Even through the domestic man power was short as very few Native Americans wanted to work in the steel mills but immigrants from Germany and Britain and later from the Eastern side of Europe came in great numbers to work in the mills. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

The Bessemer process for making steel was invented by a British engineer named Henry Bessemer, who was later referred to as Sir Henry, in the year 1856. Two years after the invention of the Bessemer process, the Siemens-Martin open-hearth method was formulated. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

As these processes were perfected by various authorities and industries, they led towards a considerable reduction in the costs that were associated with the production of steel. In addition to that, these processes also allowed the steel to be lavishly used in railroads, construction, and other industrial purposes. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

In the year 1864, the first Bessemer convertor was developed in the United States of America. The first open-hearth furnace was developed by Abram S. Hewitt, four-year after the development pf the Bessemer convertor. The open-hearth furnace was more suitable for the iron ore of the United States of America and as a result there was a rapid increase in the steel production and growth of iron and steel industry. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

Iron became a major industry in the year 1869. It accounted for about 6.6% of manufacturing employment and 7.8% of manufacturing output. At that time Andrew Carnegie was the central figure under consideration. He was responsible for making Pittsburgh the center of the iron industry. In the year 1901, Andrew Carnegie sold his operation to U.S. steel. The corporation then became one of the largest steel corporations of the world for decades. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

In the year 1873 the United States of America, produced about 115,000 tons of steel rails, which is equal to one eighth of the entire rail production of America. It shall, however, be kept under consideration that United States of America has not produced any steel rails before. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

In the 1880s, there was a massive increase in the levels of worker productivity, because of the enhancement of technology. There was a decline in the average level of required skills but highly skilled workers remained essential. During this era steel workers earn much more than the iron workers, despite the fact that they used lower level of skills.

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(Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

As the industrialists sought to have economies of scales, stable supply of raw materials and favorable market conditions, therefore, the iron and steel industry began to consolidate in this era. Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, Charles Schwab, and others are important personalities who shaped and molded the iron and steel industry of United States of America in this era. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

The growth of the iron and steel industry was often hindered by severe labor disputes during this era, an example of which would be the Homestead strike in 1892. The industry, however, was not fully unionized till the era of 1930s. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

The United States Steel Corporation, which is regarded as the largest industrial corporation throughout the globe, was established under the leadership of J. Pierpont Morgan and Elbert H. Gary, in the year 1901. The capital at the initiation of the organization was 1.4 billion dollars. In addition to that, more than 60% of the market of the United States of America was controlled by this corporation. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

After the World War II, the steel industries of various nations continued to be the measure of the size as well as the economic strength of these countries. The steel industry of the United States of America reached the highest levels of production in the year 1969. In this year the steel industry of the country produced around 141,262,000 tons of steel. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

In this era, however, new and enhanced technologies were being adapted by the nations abroad as well. This as a result, led towards a massive decrease in the cost of production and transportation expenses of these nations. Hence, the American iron and steel industry was presented with new and enhanced levels of competition. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

Significant industrial growth in began in the Great Lakes region in the era of 1850s. This industrial development relied heavily on the resource extraction, the resources in this case were extracted through mining, harvesting of timber and shipping at low cost on the lakes. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

For example, iron ore was obtained from northern Minnesota by the huge steel mills of Gary (Indiana), Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), and Cleveland (Ohio). This iron ore was shipped through the lakes at low cost. Steel products were shipped to Detroit and Chicago by the same commercial route. These steel products are then further processed into ?nished consumer goods. These consumer goods include automobiles and farm equipment etcetera. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

The Tribal Nations were first encountered by the discoverers and traders of the European Union. The routes of the Great Lakes region were used by the discoverers and traders of the European Union to discover the interiors of a location which later became the United States great Lakes of America. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

As the Great Lakes region began to further on the path of growth, the natural resources of the nation played an important role in the development and growth of the nation. The expanding demand iron ore for the steel forged in the furnaces that are fueled by the coal of Pennsylvania was fulfilled from the Iron ore that was shipped from Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota to Indiana and Ohio. In addition to that, millions of board feet of timber was also shipped from the Great Lakes region to a number of growing nations and economies. (Staff of Sector Policies and Programs Division Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 10-25)

In addition to that, new immigrants….....

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