Highlights
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation, which was based in Bethlehem, Pa., was once the largest producer of steel in the United States. Formerly the Bethlehem Steel Company, it was a major supplier of steel for ships, ammunition and other ordnance during World War I and World War II, and it stood as a symbol of the industrial might of a nation for much of the 20th century. Bethlehem Steel's earliest predecessor, the Saucona Iron Company, was founded as an iron works in Bethlehem, Pa., in 1857. The company grew rapidly as the industrial age dawned, buoyed by conflicts abroad, the construction of the railroads and the rapid, steel-reliant expansion of U.S. cities. In 1904, steel tycoon Charles M. Sch...
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation, which was based in Bethlehem, Pa., was once the largest producer of steel in the United States. Formerly the Bethlehem Steel Company, it was a major supplier of steel for ships, ammunition and other ordnance during World War I and World War II, and it stood as a symbol of the industrial might of a nation for much of the 20th century. Bethlehem Steel's earliest predecessor, the Saucona Iron Company, was founded as an iron works in Bethlehem, Pa., in 1857. The company grew rapidly as the industrial age dawned, buoyed by conflicts abroad, the construction of the railroads and the rapid, steel-reliant expansion of U.S. cities. In 1904, steel tycoon Charles M. Schwab formed the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, and he was replaced as president by Eugene G. Grace in 1916, with Schwab remaining as chairman of the board. Together, the two men oversaw a series of acquisitions and innovations that helped build Bethlehem Steel into an industrial giant. Among its holdings was the plant at Sparrows Point, Md., once the largest steel mill in the world. But by 1960, the U.S. was importing more steel than it was producing domestically, an ominous sign for Bethlehem Steel and the steel industry as a whole. Unable to keep up with changing technology and competition from overseas, the company filed for bankruptcy in 2001, and its assets were sold off. Bethlehem Steel's downfall often is cited as a prime example of the U.S. economy's transition away from industrial manufacturing.
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Herman J. Travers
Herman J. Travers, a retired postal worker who survived the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and later received two Bronze Stars for heroism during the Battle of Peleiu, died of complications from Alzheimer's disease Tuesday at Genesis Loch Raven Center....Tags: Hospitals and Clinics, Death and Dying, Alzheimer's Disease, Livestock Farming, Sociology
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Explan It To Me: What's that thing at the top of the PPL Corp. tower?
Q: What's the tube-shaped structure on top of the PPL Tower building in downtown Allentown?
It's been there more than a month, on the north side at the peak of the Tower. From ground level it looks like it might be some kind of laundry chute.
A:...Tags: Pennsylvania Power Company, Allentown, Building Material, United Way , Metal and Mineral
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William Edward Stokes, steelworker
William Edward Stokes, a retired steelworker and World War II veteran, died Monday of complications from Alzheimer's disease at Good Samaritan Hospital. He was 90.
Mr. Stokes was born and raised in Green Bay, Va., where he graduated from high school....Tags: Randallstown, Hospitals and Clinics, Baptist, Upper Marlboro, Alzheimer's Disease
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Paul P. Blitz
Paul P. Blitz, a decorated World War II veteran who fought in the Battle of the Bulge, died from complications of pneumonia Oct. 19 at Franklin Square Hospital Center. The longtime Essex resident was 95.
Born in Monessen, Pa., the son of Finnish...Tags: Hospitals and Clinics, Lung Cancer, New Year's Day, Prostate Cancer, Vehicles
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Back Story: Remembering the 'Rosie the Riveter' of black Baltimore
A large, framed poster from 1943 hangs on the wall of Hermione C. "Hermie" Graham's Columbia home. It features a young African-American woman sitting at a telephone switchboard busily routing incoming and outgoing phone calls through a plug board. It is...Tags: National or Ethnic Minorities, Minority Groups, NAACP, National Government, Business Enterprises
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At Your Service
Of The Morning CallPop singer Billy Joel sang 25 years ago about how "we're living here in Allentown, and they're closing all the factories down." In a general sense, that's what happened to a lot of manufacturing in the Lehigh Valley. What Joel didn't sing about was the...Tags: Billy Joel, Allentown, Sales, Further Education, Wachovia Corp.
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Valley's economic health hinges on small business success
Of The Morning CallFaced with rising health care and fuel costs, an increasingly competitive market for skilled workers and less-than-positive forecasts for the U.S. economy, the Lehigh Valley's small businesses will have some tough challenges in 2008, but they remain...Tags: Work Relations, Employers, Employees, Whitehall, South Whitehall Township
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A safe bet: Sands BethWorks Casino likely to be a top employer
Of The Morning CallAlmost overnight, the Sands BethWorks Casino will do something it has taken some of the area's biggest companies decades to do: become one of the Lehigh Valley's top 10 employers. By the time the casino, hotel and shopping complex opens next year,...Tags: Unemployment, Colleges and Universities, Casino and Gambling, Tourism and Leisure, Employees
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Assembly votes to let retirees in health plan
Sun StaffThe General Assembly passed legislation last night to help Bethlehem Steel Corp. retirees who are not old enough for Medicare to obtain state-backed insurance coverage. Under the legislation, Bethlehem retirees between the ages of 55 and 64 would be able...Tags: Peter A. Hammen, Government Health Care, Medical Services, Laws, Credit and Debt
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Family speaks of being proud of brother, son
Sun National StaffThe frenzy surrounding the nomination of Judge John G. Roberts Jr. to the U.S. Supreme Court paid a short visit to a well-trimmed golf course suburb off Route 40 in Ellicott City yesterday, where the nominee's parents and two sisters crowded around an...Tags: Clubs and Associations, Ellicott City, The White House, Local Authority, Timonium
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GM loses $1 billion, will cut 25,000 jobs
Sun StaffGeneral Motors Corp., a symbol of American industrial might a half-century ago when it became the first U.S. company to make $1 billion in a year, announced plans yesterday to cut 25,000 jobs after losing more than $1 billion in the first quarter of...Tags: Government Health Care, Unemployment, Colleges and Universities, Vehicles, Robert H Smith
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A factory that shaped their lives in Dundalk
Sun StaffLongpoint Road is a quiet street of bungalows, some with carports, on a peninsula that reaches to Dundalk's Bear Creek. It's a place where families have for years gathered for cookouts, where John Eltringham would lend his electric cement mixer to a...Tags: Fort Meade, Plant Closings, Colleges and Universities, Vehicles, Layoffs and Downsizing
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