Youngstown, O. This photo, dated 1910, does not list a location but shows steelworkers at Youngstown Sheet & Tube tapping a blast furnace long before the days of aluminized silver suits.
Photo courtesy of Ohio History Connection
P&LE RR Gateway Yard
Struthers, O. - When it opened in 1957 the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad Gateway Yard was considered a major milestone in the timeline of the P&LE. The yard was over 5 miles long, stretching from from Center St. to Lowellville, and handling freight for many of the area's heavy industrial concerns. They didn't call this railroad The Little Giant for nothing, the P&LE moved more tonnage than average for such a short railroad. It only operated between Youngstown and Pittsburgh, but think how many steel mills they serviced.
Here are some photos I took down there, mostly from 03/04, so excuse the low resolution/poor quality. I feel fortunate to have taken photos of the footbridge into the yard before it was demolished, and of the rooftop sign before some white rappers from Poland turned it into a billboard for suburban struggle music.
All images copyright Paul Grilli 2017
The P&LE's history in the Youngstown area goes back much further than 1957, they actually owned and operated a dining hall and a YMCA on Wilson Avenue, directly across from the Campbell water plant. Check out this Sanborn map from 1928.
The P&LE was completely absorbed into CSX in 1993. The photos below were taken 10 years later when the footbridge from Wilson Avenue into the yard still stood. I was always fascinated by this bridge. Think about how many hardworking people walked to work, or took a bus from Youngstown/Campbell/Struthers/Lowelville, and crossed this bridge every day.
Footbridge on left. Hump center. Car barn and now demolished building that housed locker rooms/med station center right.
I'm assuming the workers that crossed that bridge walked directly through this man tunnel that went under the hump. There wasn't much light at the end of it when I was down there.
The photo below is one of my favorites I took down there, a long forgotten employee directory. I love seeing the writing that was left on the walls by guys that were laid off years ago. Who are these guys, where are they now? Why did Blackie suck? Were Sam, Frank, Natale and Al the kind of guys you would want to drink a beer with after work on Friday, at the same bar on Wilson Avenue you cashed your check at?
Below - Clockwise from top: Sink - Medical Station - Union sticker - Missing control panel in hump yard tower - locker detail - car barn grease bay
Jacket found in basement of main hump yard tower.
Below - Clockwise from top: Main hump yard tower and the hump - PSA - Demolished - RR propaganda
Car barn interior
Below - Clockwise from top: Hump yard tower - Open manhole - Remnants of last crew - Rain lockers - Another yard tower - Locker room
This yard tower was located down in Lowellville at the far end of the yard. It was re-purposed by kids that rode the rails. I wish I had more photos, but you can see some hobo graffiti above the window in the second image. There was a notebook where different freight train riders signed in with where they were from and where they were going. Remarks about the weather and which trains you had to wait on for hours to pull out. There was a track map scrawled on the wall, with arrows pointing to Cleveland, Pittsburgh etc. It was fascinating.
US Steel Ohio Works
Youngstown, O. -This photo is dated 1947, I am guessing this was a rebuild of the #4 blast furnace. This photo features questionable safety practices and a nice birds eye view of the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Brier Hill works in the background. The caption reads "Sledging shrink link into place on top ring casting at US Steel Ohio Works Youngstown Ohio"
Photo courtesy of the Ohio Memory Project.
Youngstown Sheet & Tube Brier Hill Works
Youngstown, O. - This photo is interesting to me for a few reasons, but let's look past the (now defunct) Erie Lackawanna RR in the foreground, the (now demolished) Sheet & Tube blast furnace to the left and what I think is a (now demolished) US Steel blast furnace in the center/background.
Let's talk about the old Division Street bridge on the left of the photo, which was taken in 1975. Right before they knocked down the bridge, my buddy Vito and I decided to walk over it to Brier Hill from the Westside. I remember holes in the pavement that you could see through to the ground below, and a single shoe in the middle of the bridge. I started to climb the arch on the Brier Hill side, holding either side of the H beam and using the half-a tennis ball sized rivets for footing. Made it less than 50' up the arch and came right back down hah. Didn't feel like falling 100 feet that day.
I was one of the last people on the old bridge, and one of the first on the new 711 version of the bridge. Right before they opened it, I drove up the Stephens St off ramp and cruised the wrong way to Brier Hill. Another dumb ass move, but it was closed to traffic so no harm no foul.
Photo credit: Akron Rail Road Club
The William B. Pollock Co.
Youngstown, O. - Two photos, dated 1910, detailing construction of hot metal cars at the William Pollock Co.; and some of the employees of this company that closed in 1983.
Image courtesy of ohiomemory.org
Image courtesy of ohiomemory.org
General Fireproofing Co.
Youngstown, O. - A patent, issued just over 80 years ago, for an art deco steel chair designened by Dwight Powell, of Youngstown, Ohio.
“PATENT OFFICE DESIGN FOR A CHAIR Dwight Powell, Youngstown, Ohio, assignor to The General Fireproofing Company, Youngstown, Ohio, a, corporation of Ohio Application December 7, 1936, Serial No. 66,374
Term of patent 14 years To all whom it may concern:
Be it known that I, Dwight Powell, a citizen of the United States, residing at Youngstown, in the county of Mahoning and State of Ohio, have invented a new, original, and ornamental Design for a Chair, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, forming part thereof.
Figure 1 is a front perspective View of the chair, showing my new design; and
Figure 2 is a rear perspective view thereof.
I claim:
The ornamental design for a chair as shown.
DWIGHT POWELL.”
The Republic Rubber Co.
Youngstown, O. - I don't know what it is about this place. It's been photographed to death, it's pretty much empty, and it's not a steelmill so it shouldn't really concern me that much. Still, I've grown to have a connection to it. The first photo I took of my city decaying around me was down here. Was interviewed by a PBS film crew here. Three times. The third trip they brought two Pulitzer Prize winners with them.
I'm not going to go into the whole history of the place, but you can read a detailed write up here.
My dad's buddy/distant relative John-o used to work here. I'd say he's the reason my parents got together. How else would a guy from the Westside of Youngstown meet a girl from the Westside of Warren? My mom said she thought John-o worked at Youngstown Steel Door when she and my dad met, but he was an employee of Republic at one point. John-o's girl worked with my mom making light bulbs at General Electric. After they got transferred from Ohio Lamp in Warren to Austintown Coil, they used to hang out at Tee Mar's on Meridian where she met John-o's friends, my dad included. Both couples are still happily married, and here I am typing this.
My cousin Chris took me here the first time I went. He had taken some amazing photos next door at Republic Steel's old Truscon plant. One in particular made me want to pick up a camera, a black and white of the locked gate at Truscon. I think we came across the rubber plant on accident. Can't recall, this was damn near 20 years ago. There was a lot more of the plant standing at that time, I've watched it decay over the years.
The rotten wooden steps that went up the side of a structure (that no longer stands) were decayed when our dumb asses decided to climb up it. Really glad we didn't die. Million dollar view though. Gallery below.
Photos from that first trip in gallery below. Most of this stuff is gone now. I was armed with some little bullshit point and shoot camera, which I really didn't know how to use. The photos are pretty terrible in quality, and I didn't know the first thing about photography, but I feel like I captured the way I saw it. And the way I want you to see it.
This stack is long gone.
Scrappers hard at work.
Images below are from the mid 2000s maybe? Not sure, but I had a real camera at that point. Caught a different cousin of mine looking over the ruins in the fourth image.
In late 2015 I get a private message on Facebook from a guy that says he is a documentary film maker with PBS. My initial thought was this is some kind of scam, but I check out his page and he seems legit. Says he saw my photos on my old blog, and that Nick Serra told him to contact me. Turns out they were producing a documentary about three US cities that have fallen on hard times: Memphis, Stockton CA., and Youngstown.
I spent the morning we were supposed to meet up tearing up floors at the Soap Gallery, which was yet to open. Left there sweaty and probably stinking, walked over to this coffee shop downtown and see Nick Serra and Sean Posey sitting outside. Now I didn't know these guys, but we were friends on the internet, and all had similar interests in our photography so I say whats up to them. They were these to meet these PBS guys too I came to find out. Keith and Chris from the Documentary Foundation show up and we skipped the coffee and went straight down Albert St. to film at Republic Rubber. Photos from that trip below. They interviewed us individually, I guess they wanted to touch on people that photograph their deteriorating cities. They seemed interested in the fact that my whole damn family was steelworkers. We went to the Krakusy Hall on the south side from there, which was torn down not long after. I had been there when I was younger and it was an active social club, so I had some stories for them too. After that, we all went down the Golden Dawn, had some schooners of Genesee, talked a little more and parted ways. Photos from that trip below.
I got a call from the Documentary Foundation guys the next day, saying they like the personal connection I have to the city, my passion for it, and they want to film with me again. We went back to the plant and did a longer interview. I didn't really shoot much, but I got to ramble on about Youngstown, which is fine by me.
Since the day I first went to this place I've been finding shoes in the oddest places.
Climbed the rungs of the interior ladder in the remaining smokestack and shot this from the hip.
It was a couple months later and they call again saying they want to film some more. They also say they are bringing these big time authors with them. I wasn't sure who it was, I just hoped they wouldn't be some stuffy academic types. I was pleasantly surprised, these guys were cool as hell.
I'm waiting for them at the plant, and Dale Maharidge and Michael S. Williamson show up. I forget how it came up, but one of the first things Michael tells me is that he took the photo of the steelworker holding his kid in the taphouse of the Jeanette furnace at the Brier Hill works. I was woefully ignorant to these guys and their body of work, but I had seen that photo. I replied something like "Holy shit man, that was you?! That is like the most iconic Youngstown photo I ever seen!"
We spent the next few hours photographing the plant, and talking about the downfall of Youngstown and other steel towns like ours. These guys covered the situation here when the bottom was dropping out, and saw a side of Youngstown that people in my generation never will. And documented it well. Their book Journey to Nowhere: The Saga of the New Underclass was what inspired Bruce Springsteen to write the song Youngstown (The line "now the yard's just scrap and rubble, guess them big boys did what Hitler couldn't do" is a reference to their interiew with Joe Marshall Sr and Jr down the Ohio works after the furnaces came down.). They sneaked the Boss into the Brier Hill works to photograph in front of the Jeanette furnace. When he played the song Youngstown in Youngstown at Stambaugh Auditorium in the 90's they accompanied him there, the lucky SOBs.
The photos below are courtesy of Dale Maharidge, who posted them on Facebook about thier trip and the visit to Republic. I was telling them I had the Youngstown Sheet & Tube logo tatted on my arm, as well as an image of the Jeanette furnace. We came to the conclusion that Michael probably took the photo I found on the web when they had Springsteen down there. You can see the goosebumps on my arm in Dale's photo below (fig. 3).
Michael S. Williamson and Paul Grilli.
Paul Grilli, Chris Rufo and Keith Ochwat.
Tattoo work by Joe Thomas
This was easily the most humbling and inspirational experiences of my life. Blood was shed (fig. 1), tales were told, photos were graphed. Once we wrapped up there, I convinced them to go to Nicolinni's and got them to try the greens, which you should do with every out of towner. We talked some more, where I received encouragement to write a book and put my experiences growing up in Youngstown out there. Sit tight for that. I had to leave right after, I was living in Columbus and had to work the next morning. They wound up at the Vista, a little neighborhood bar down the end of my cousins old street. I should have called off and went damn it. Son of a bitch. They interviewed other people there, former steelworkers that were hurt by the shut downs, and my buddy Dub who just happened to be there shooting pool. I really should have stayed, they could've seen that Westside kids order a shot and a beer just like the oldtimer steelworkers before them that drank at that same bar. We just don't have the good paying jobs they used to.
Blood on Brick
Feathers.
Natural light.
Plazma cutter?
US Steel Ohio Works
Youngstown, O. Installation of a goggle valve (fabricated by the William Pollock Co., of Youngstown, O.) at the US Steel Ohio works in the 1940s.
Goggle valve info:
In a blast furnace there is a need to control flows of high temperature and dirty, dust-laden gases. A goggle valve is a type of large industrial valve designed for this type of use. They are another signature item on a blast furnace.
Goggle valves earned their name because the valve plate has two equal circular areas each defined by a sealing ring on both faces of the plate. One circular area is solid and the other is completely open. These two adjacent circular areas resemble a giant pair of eye-goggles. When the solid area is across the valve passage, it blocks the flow of fluid through the valve, and when the open area is across the valve passage, fluid flows freely through the valve. There is no intermediate position. It is either open or closed.
To actuate the goggle valve is a two-step operation. First, a section of the valve body moves in an axial direction to unclamp the goggle plate. This movement is quite small, on the order of a fraction of an inch or so, just enough clearance to allow the goggle plate to move in its housing. Then the goggle plate moves. In older designs it rotates on an arc. That is the type modeled in this kit. The valves body then moves axially back to clamp the valve and seal the perimeter of the openings.
On blast furnaces the valve body is usually exposed to the atmosphere, since small leaks during opening and closing are generally not a problem. This makes the mechanism highly visible. However, in chemical plants, goggle valves are encased in a bonnet to capture any leakage during the actuation.
Goggle valves have two main advantages. First they tend to be compact and can fit in tight confines, though on a blast furnace this is not normally an issue. Secondly, when open, the valve presents a smooth surface to the gas flow. Other valve designs, such as a gate valve, tend to have a valve seat. In a high volume flow with hot dirty gases, the valve seat can cause cavitation, a kind of a bubbling turbulence, which wears away the valve seat and requires expensive maintenance. On the other hand, goggle valves tend to be more expensive to initially install than other types.
William Tod Co.
Youngstown, O. A postcard from the early 20th century, featuring the largest gear ever made with machined helical teeth. Designed and built with pride in Youngstown.
Sculpture
Industrial themed sculptures in the Steel Valley.
I really wish I had a photo of the sculpture of the two guys in hardhats carrying a length of pipe that stood in front of what is now the LB Foster plant on Salt Springs in Mineral Ridge. It is gone now, why they tore it out is beyond me. The sculpture used to scare the hell out of me as a kid as we drove from Youngstown to my grandparents in Warren. I remember thinking they were going to throw the pipe into the car as we drove by. We would drive past there to Main Avenue, under the three ancient stone railroad trestles (gotta beep under each one!) and then ride up Main between the hot and cold ends of the former Republic Steel Warren Works, which was running at that time. The sights/sounds/smells you would experience on that ride were fascinating for a little kid. To an adult too if were being honest.
Warren, O. - Steelworker sculpted from steel in front of the United Steel Workers Local 1375 union hall. I don't know much about this one except it stands in front of the local that represented the former Republic Steel Warren Works. The sculpture has a a strange texture to it, almost like it is rusting away.
Detail of the sculpture's feet. He is standing on scattered expanded metal, which is all that remains of portions of the mill where the men who were represented by this local used to work.
Niles, O. - "STEELWORKER"
The 20' sculpture of a steelworker that stands in front of Niles Iron and Metal, which is a scrapyard. This piece was crafted by Sidney Rackoff.
Youngstown, O. "THE STEEL MAKERS"
This sculpture of two steelworkers stands in front of the Youngstown Historical Center of Labor and Industry. The men stand in front of what I am told is an actual portion of an Open Hearth furnace from US Steel's Ohio Works. The men depicted were part of the USWA Local 1462, which may have been a Youngstown Sheet and Tube local, but I have not found confirmation on that. Inscription text below.
*UPDATE* Per Rick Rowlands, of www.todengine.org, "The sculpture in front of the YHCIL is made of components from Brier Hill's open hearth and the two workers are actual YS&T steelworkers. An interesting note. Originally both had bronzed hard hats. A few years ago someone pried one of the bronze hardhats off, so I grabbed a real hardhat out of my collection and glued it on the guy's head."
THE STEEL MAKERS (1980)
By George Segal (1924 - 2000)
By United Steelworkers of America, District 1
Model Steelworkers:
Peter Kolby, Jr. (right) - Wayman Paramore (left)
Members of Local 1462
Youngstown, O. - A relief detailing an industrial scene on the wall of Saint Anthony's Church, in Brier Hill. Saint Joe is helping a steelworker sample hot metal, to the left of a detail of a Blast Furnace and what looks like Open Hearths. This church, which still has a congregation of mostly Italians, was located right up the hill from the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Brier Hill works.
Youngstown, O. - The Peanut Bridge, as it is locally known. They say the Ironworkers that built this bridge welded a steel sculpture of Mr. Peanut up on the struts. Took this some years ago when the bridge was green and rusty. They have since refinished the bridge, and painted Mr. Peanut in his familiar yellow and black.
*Updated 12/13/2016*
Youngstown, O. - Almost forgot this guy, out front of Youngstown Bolt. I'm sure it is a sculpture of a dapper screw, but it looks like a piece of pizza to me. Maybe that's my Youngstown talking. This place had an awesome shop dog. I would go there and pick up materials when I was a helper/gopher for a mechanical contractor in Youngstown, and the dog would just be lounging by the counter. I think all shops like this should have a chill dog that lays around in the shop all day.
*Updated 3/11/2017*
New Castle, PA - Sculpture of a ladle pouring metal in front of the former Pennsylvania Engineering Corporation (PECor) on Moravia Street in south New Castle. I took this photo a decade ago. The sculpture is gone, the rollers behind it are gone, the entire plant is gone. This company built hot metal carrying equipment: ladles, hot metal rail cars, the Bessemer converter that still stands at Station Square in Pittsburgh.
Youngstown Sheet and Tube Campbell Works
Campbell, O. - The boys in the Open Hearth department receiving their award for 1,000,000 man hours without a major injury.
My pops made his living, until shortly after Black Monday, hauling hot slag out of the Open Hearth in Campbell. I wonder if he knew these guys. He drove a slag truck for Industrial Mill Service until they shut down the Campbell works. He was working night turn, and after his last shift running to the slag dump he and his coworkers went for a drink to drown their sorrows. He said they went to a "social club" in Struthers called Saint Anthony's that served liquor at 7am on a Sunday, which I'm assuming was against Ohio liquor laws haha.
A story he told me when I was younger still sticks with me. Apparently a ladle accidentally spilled hot metal on the floor in the mill, and they needed to get it cleaned up in a hurry. They loaded the molten metal into the open top dump trucks they used to haul the slag. It was so hot that the sides of the trailer were glowing red. The Christmas decorations were up in downtown Strudders, you know the wreaths and what not they hang from the streetlights. The decorations were melting off of the poles when he stopped under them, and the people walking down the street were taking cover from the heat radiating from the trailer.
WILLIAM B. POLLOCK, Co.
Youngstown, O. - "The End of a Long and Proud History" This is a sad one. This company built blast furnaces and hot metal transportation equipment that was not only used in the Steel Valley, but all over the world. They lasted 120 years. The tombstone in the bottom right of the photo reads "Pollock Company 1863 - 1983 Laid to Rest by GATX" Present in this photo: Front, left to right: Barry Shultz, Bill Kasmer, Tom Hull, Jim Roper, Emily, Joan, Ray, Bob, Bill Hill, John Titak, Bill Deak, Jim Slifka, Mike Kohl, unknown, and Joe Bunosky. To right side of grave marker: Sam Muscatell, unknown, and Dwayne Schonce. Back row: Laddie Bodnor, Roger Powell, and Chester Queen. Images courtesy of Ohio History Connection.
The Final Shipment
Here are some images of employees dating back to the early days of the company
1910 - Cinder Car
1910 - Fabrication Crew - Could be building Cowper stoves for a blast furnace.
1910 - Showing off new safety goggles.
1940s/50s - Line of Pollock Co. cinder cars with US Steel's Edgar Thompson works in the background.
1960 - Pollock hot metal car at J&L steel Pittsburgh works.
Youngstown Sheet and Tube Brier Hill Works
Youngstown, O. - Congratulations to the blast furnace department at Sheet and Tube's Brier Hill works for logging 1,000,000 man hours without a major injury!
Photo circa 1955 - Image courtesy of Ohio History Connection
Ghost Signs
Steel Valley, O. - I was in Youngstown a couple weekends back, and went ghost sign hunting. Found some gems I want people to see so here you go.
Youngstown, O. - The William B. Pollock Company.
Never thought I would find something this historically significant. I came across this on accident, was down the bottom of Himrod Avenue looking for this company, but was looking at the wrong building. Gave up and went next door to photgraph the old 10/90 warehouse (a dress factory converted to a semi legal skate park in the 90s), looked up and saw something painted on the wall of the building across the street. Sure and begorrah it was the logo for the William B. Pollock Co. You can barely make out the logo on the wall, but check out the Pollock ad below and compare the two. Founded in 1863, this company built America. They engineered and built blast furnaces and hot metal cars. This plant right at the end of Federal St. had a hand in revolutionizing the steel industry. They were responsible for engineering and building the Trumbull Cliffs furnace, which I believe at that time was the largest blast furnace in the world. This furnace was owned by Republic Steel, WCI Steel, Severstal and RG Steel. She is the last blast furnace in the Steel Valley, and is in the midst of demolition.
Girard, O. - Youngstown Sheet and Tube Brier Hill Works.
This is a two for one bonus. Behind the fading "Syro Steel Brier Hill Div" ghost sign, you can see the yellow and black sign they painted over peeking through. The original sign proudly read "Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company". I know this because there was an identical Sheet and Tube sign on the side of the Struthers works that faced the river/Wilson Ave. That building is gone, but I photographed it 15 years ago or so, see bottom photo (old photo, excuse poor quality). If you zoom in on the current photo, you will see the "Syro Steel Entrance" sign on the sloped building that is dwarfed by that roof vent that is sitting on the ground. This was an underground entrance into the mill, and man I want to go down there.
Niles, O. - Republic Steel
I took this photo just over 10 years ago. I went back recently to photograph it again with a better camera, only to find they painted it over. Glad I got this when I did.
Youngstown, O. - The Snyder-Bentley Co.
I don't know much about this company, except they are located across the street from what was Carnegie Steel's Upper Union Mills. The were an industrial distributor of some sort formed in the 20's, and they have a cool looking sign.
Youngstown, O.- Brier Hill Slag Co.
This isn't a ghost sign in the traditional sense I suppose, but it's gone so it applies to me. Damn I wish I would have preserved this thing. This sat in front of what was Sheet and Tube Brier Hill works. I took this as they were tearing down the YST office building in the background. I think Youngstown Steel Heritage ( http://www.todengine.org/ ) has the engraved stone sign that was at the top of the building that read "Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company".
Warren, O. - Copperweld Steel Co.
This isn't a ghost sign either, but my grandpa worked here 33 years so you're going to have to deal with looking at it. Did you know during WWII Copperweld rolled and stretched uranium for the war effort? My grandpa was away fighting ze Germans, but when he came home he worked a rolling mill out there. Wonder if it was one that rolled the radioactive material for the Manhattan Project.
J&L Steel + P&LE RR
Youngstown, OH: These photos, which i borrowed from eBay, show the transition of industrial assets during the fall of the steel industry. Re-industrialization maybe?
J&L Steel - Campbell, OH: What once was Sharon Steel Hoop Corp. transitioned to J&L Steel. J&L did not have much of a presence in Youngstown, but their mills dominated the south side Pittsburgh skyline. The Youngstown mill is where my great uncle Al Grilli worked most of his life. When he retired this was known as Cold Metal Products. The photos below show the way they transitioned these mills in the 80s, in this case they just slapped some paint over the iconic J&L, and didn't even take care to cover the whole logo. The mill is still active, and is now known as Youngstown Pipe and Steel.
Pittsburgh & Lake Erie RR: Locomotive #1501, which once was a workhorse for the "Little Giant" P&LE RR. At some point this loco transitioned to use on the Youngstown & Austintown RR. What once pulled massive amounts of raw materials and finished prodcuts for the steel industry, became my alarm clock in the summer. I grew up 8 houses from the Y&A line on North Hazelwood Avenue. Every morning around 9:15, the Y&A would blast it's horn, which let me know it was time to go down by the tracks and play. I would run outside and count the cars, which was usually 3 or 4. This loco was on light duty in it's retirement compared to what it used to pull I'm sure. Either way, it played a major part in my childhood. It makes me think of the men who ran it for the P&LE in it's heyday, and how their lives were affected by the closing of that rail road. Photos below courtesy www.railpictures.net
P&LE Gateway Yard
Youngstown, OH. Today is the 50th anniversary of a milestone for the now defunct Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad. Per the Youngstown Vindicator, "Railroad officials gather at the Gateway Yard in Youngstown for the "humping" of the 5 millionth car (enough to circle the earth). Humping is the act of shoving a line of freight cars over a hill onto multiple tracks, to be divided into a new train.
The P&LE got it's nickname, The Little Giant, because they moved so much tonnage in relation to the amount of track they controlled. While they did offer passenger service, they primarily moved steel, and the ingredients to make it in its raw form: coal, limestone and iron ore.
I have photographed what is left of the Gateway Yard many times, but on an occasion such as this anniversary, I wanted to show it in it's prime, not the post industrial wasteland I know it as. Check out the video below from YouTube user Erie1264.
St. Mary's Byzantine Rite Church
Youngstown, O.
This Greek Catholic church was located in the heart of Youngstown's Steelton neighborhood, and was literally across the street from where U.S. Steel’s Ohio Works once stood. I wonder what mass was like with the sounds of an integrated steel mill playing back up to the organ? Bang clang bang woosh clang (Amen) train whistle clang clang bang maybe?
Below is an interior photo of the church in it's early years. When I documented the building in 2010 or 11, the beautiful mosaic floor was carpeted, and the ornate ceiling was dry walled over. A few years after I took these photos an arsonist burned the church down to the brick walls.
Images below circa 2010 +/-
Copyright Paul Grilli 2017
Copyright Paul Grilli 2017
Copyright Paul Grilli 2017
Copyright Paul Grilli 2017
Copyright Paul Grilli 2017
Copyright Paul Grilli 2017
The night of the fire. Photo and video below courtesy of Nicholas Serra.
Copyright Nicholas Serra.
US Steel Ohio Works
YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO: The top photo looks like an old dock on a beach somewhere, but its whats left of conveyor belts (middle row) and the flooded basement left over from tearing down US Steel’s Ohio Works (bottom row). I took these so long ago man, the photos from the roof of the mill have to be at least 5 years old. Actually that was the time me and my cousin Matt got caught by the security guard. The guy was hostile at first because people had been mercilessly scrapping the place, plus he didn't believe that somebody wanted to photograph the ruins before they tore it down. I tell him my whole family was steelworkers, i grew up on Hazelwood and could see the smoke stacks from my house etc etc. It turns out he was some big shot at the mill when it was running, and the head of security after it was abandoned. Guy offered us a tour of the place when he found out i knew his granddaughter, but we didn't take him up on it. That's a big regret of mine. they tore everything down like 6 months later. Don't mind me though I'm just thinking out loud.
US Steel Ohio Works
Youngstown, O. - My cousin Chris was telling me about this tunnel on the West Side that went under Midwest Steel & Alloy from Salt Springs so we decided to check it out. When I went to his house in the Steelton neighborhood he crawled out the coal chute to greet me. Photos below. We walked down to the mouth of the tunnel with my new $600 camera and started into the tunnel. At first the water was ankle or knee deep but towards the end it was up to our nipples.
Before the company above was Midwest Steel it was Carnegie Illinois Steel's skull cracker yard. I wonder if this tunnel was built by ol Andy Carnegie; it certainly looked like old enough construction to be the case.
At the other end of the tunnel was the Mahoning River, where we skipped rocks with the former Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co.'s Brier Hill works in the background. We then climbed up the steep bank to check out the long abandoned pump house that was on the scrapyard's property. I can't seem to find those photos but it was very interesting also, take my word for it. We walked down to Cherol's market from there, like so many USS employees before us, bought a couple Stewart's lime pops and officially called the start of summer.
Grandpa
Youngstown, O. - My Grandpa’s trash burner. The nice people at Sharon Steel were kind enough to let my great uncle Freddie machine this out of plate steel on the clock, out of their materials. (I’m sure thats how it went).