Ellwood City, 1929

Ellwood City is a borough in Beaver and Lawrence counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Ellwood City is 30 miles
(48 km) northwest of Pittsburgh and some 8 miles (13 km) south by southeast of New Castle. In the past, Ellwood City
sustained many light industries such as steel-tube mills, steel-car works, building-stone and limestone quarries,
foundries and machine shops, coal-mining, etc. In 1900, 2,243 people lived in Ellwood City, 3,902 lived there in 1910,
and 12,329 lived there in 1940. The population was 8,688 at the 2000 census. The 2008 population estimate is 7966.

Ellwood City History

Reference: Twentieth Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County, 1908
Author: Aaron L. Hazen (Aaron Lyle)
Pages 363-365

Prosperous and thriving borough that it is, with its enormous manufacturing plants which produce millions of dollars'
worth of products and pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in salaries, yearly, with its well stocked stores and its
modern homes, Ellwood City, located within the limits of Wayne Township, has a history which dates back less than a
score of years. It is the home of such plants as those of the American Steel Car Forge Company, Glen Manufacturing
Company, Ellwood Foundry Company, Standard Engineering Company, National Tube Company, Ellwood City Glass Company,
Ellwood Brick and Limestone Company, Standard Tube Company, the Tindel-Morris Company, the Oarlock Packing Company, the
National Supply and Construction Company and the Ellwood Lumber Company.

The American Steel Car Forge. Company is the outgrowth of a business begun in 1894 under the name and style of the Baker
Forge Company, which was organized for the purpose of manufacturing wagon hardware. The plant occupies 7.5 acres (30,000
m2) of land and gives employment to about 700 men. Its officers are J. M. Hanson, president; C. W. Wright, secretary; T.
A. Gillespie, treasurer, and C. A. Martin, general manager.

The Standard Tube Company, the largest seamless tube plant in the world, was originally conducted as a stock company,
with R. C. Steifel as president and general manager; the stock was owned by R. C. Steifel, J. H. Micholson and C. E.
Pope. It was conducted as an independent concern until 1901, when it was purchased by the National Tube Company, and
shortly afterwards incorporated as a part of the United States Steel Corporation. The various seamless tube
manufacturing plants are operated under the Shelby Steel Tube Company, with general offices in Pittsburgh. The Ellwood
City plant covers 9 acres (36,000 m2) and has a capacity of 350 tons per day, employing 2,200 men. Its capital stock is
$600,000.

The Elmwood Brick and Limestone Company is a successor to the Ellwood Brick Company, Limited, which was organized in May,
1892, and was one of the first plants of any consequence in the borough. J.M. Montgomery is president, and T. J. Fulmer,
secretary and treasurer. It is capitalized at $30,000.

The Glen Manufacturing Company, manufacturers of gray iron castings, derrick fittings, wire fencing, builders' iron work,
etc., originated in 1902, and started in business in January, 1903. It bought out the Hartman Manufacturing Company,
which was established in Ellwood City in 1892. H. S. Blatt serves as president, and A. M. Jones as secretary and
treasurer of this company, which is capitalized at $100,000. The Standard Engineering Company, employing about 250 men,
is engaged in the manufacture of rolling and tube mill machinery, pipe threading machines, sand rolls and high grade
gray iron castings, up to thirty tons weight. It is capitalized at $3,000,000, and its officers are C. D. Coban,
president, and H. M. Criswell, secretary and treasurer. The plant was erected in 1902.

The plant of the Tindel-Morris Company in. Ellwood City was erected in 1895, and incorporated in 1898. It had its
inception in 1862 as the Frankfort Steel Company, a plant having been established at that date in Frankfort,
Pennsylvania. The name was later changed to the Frankfort Steel and Forge Company, and in 1895 the factory was moved to
Ellwood City, where it covers 2 acres (8,100 m2) of ground. Two hundred men are employed in the manufacture of machine
tools, gas and steam engines, and automobiles. The officers of the company are Adam Tindel, president; L. G. Morris,
vice-president; L. W. Gruber, secretary, and G. B. Reed, assistant vice-president and manager.

The Ellwood City Glass Company, with capital stock at $60,000, in 1905 grew out of the re-organization of the Clark Bros.
Glass Company, which was established in 1892 by Harry Northwood. It manufactures a high grade of blown tumblers and
employs about 210 men. Charles Runyon is president and treasurer, and W. M. Gertman, secretary. The Oarlock Packing
Company, with main office and factory at Elmira, N. Y., operates a plant in Ellwood City, as well as in most of the
largest cities of the United States. They are patentees and manufacturers of the Oarlock fibrous and Pitt metal
packings, their product reaching the markets of all the civilized world. This company has been in operation in Ellwood
City since 1905, when it leased the plant of the Pitt Manufacturing Company, which had been organized and was operated
by Pittsburgh capitalists. The Oarlock Packing Company was incorporated in 1905 with O. J. Garlock as president; F.W.
Griffith, vice-president and treasurer, and J. H. L. Galagher, secretary. E. T. R. Holt is superintendent of the Ellwood
plant. Zeigler & Lambert, manufacturers of carriages and wagons, making a specialty of delivery wagons, established a
factory in Ellwood City in 1907, and conducts a thriving business.

The Ellwood Lumber Company, with principal office and yard at Ellwood City, was incorporated under the laws of
Pennsylvania, May 21, 1904, and has a capital stock of $100,000, although it was in operation many years prior to that
date. It operates branches at Aliquippa and Ambridge, Pa., having a large planing mill at the latter point. The officers
of the company are W. J. McKim, president; Thomas L. Haines, vice-president, and John F. Haines, secretary, treasurer
and general manager. The National Supply and Construction Company, which is engaged in general contracting, the lumber
and planing mill business, was organized in 1906, and has a cap ital stock of $50,000. Its officers are Albert C. Frey,
president; B. F. Boss, vice-president, and B. F. Mosher, secretary and treasurer.

Ellwood City boasts of two banking institutions which class with the leading financial institutions of Lawrence County,
the First National and the People's National Bank. The First National Bank of Ellwood City was organized in 1892, and
has a capital stock of $100,000; its officers are John A. Gelbach, president; H. S. Blatt, vice-president, and W. J.
McKim, cashier. The People's National Bank was organized May 9, 1907, and is capitalized at $50,000. Its officers are C.
A. Martin, president; J. E. VanGorder, vice-president, and J. E. Cobler, cashier.

The borough is well provided with good substantial public service companies, particularly the Ellwood Water Company and
the Manufacturers' Light and Heat Company. It has two newspapers of a high order, namely: The Ellwood Citizen and the
Ellwood Eagle and Motor.

The affairs of the borough are efficiently administered by the following officers: John H. Hassler, burgess; John A.
Gelbach, treasurer; William McElroy, clerk; Captain Moon, chief of police; H. R. Johnson, chief of the fire department;
George Cron, high constable; Jacob Bair, tax collector, and Matthew Strohecker, road commissioner. The council consists
of the following: Dr. Silas Stevenson, president; James Lenigen, E. J. Hazen, Henry W. Dambach, M. P. McCarthy, W. J.
Krok and Dr. P. C. Vosler. The school board is made up of the following citizens: Joseph Humphrey, president; George
Dambach, Dr. C. M. Iseman, B. U. Brown, secretary; Charles E. Whistler and William Kearns. The following constitute the
Board of Health: Rev. A. B. Lentz, president; Dr. S. S. Davidson, Dr. P. P. Cunningham, John Scheidamantle, Howard
McCliman and John McKim. B. A. Todd has been postmaster of the borough since 1901, when he was appointed by William
McKinley, president; he was re-appointed by President Roosevelt in 1905.

The following are the officers of the Ellwood City Board of Trade: Charles E. Whistler, president; A. M. Jones,
vice-president; D. J. Mulcahy, secretary, and A. C. Frey, treasurer. Its board of directors includes Charles E.
Whistler, Matthew A. Riley, A. C. Frey, H. S. Blatt and J. A. Gelbach.

The moral tone of a community is ever reflected by the number and conditions of its churches and benevolent societies.
Both of these agencies for the accomplishment of good are numerically strong in Ellwood City, and the individual bodies
in a prosperous and healthy condition. Following are the churches in the borough, together with the names of the
pastors: Baptist, Rev. U. M. Davis; Catholic, Rev. Father Hisson; Christian, Rev. F. L. Taylor; Free Methodist, Rev. J.
T. Barkas; German Lutheran, Rev. A. P. Lentz; Lutheran, Rev. A. P. Lentz; Methodist, Rev. A. Benton; Reformed, Rev. A.
K. Kline; Presbyterian, Rev. Rendall; United Presbyterian, Rev. J. A. McDonald.

The following are the fraternal societies of Ellwood City: Masons, Fraternal Order of Eagles, Knights of Pythias,
Independent Order of Odd Fellows (two lodges), Knights of the Golden Eagle, Knights and Ladies of Honor, German
Beneficial Union, Uniformed Rank, Knights of the Maccabees, Ladies of the Maccabees, Protective Home Circle and Sons of
Veterans. Twentieth Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County, 1908, pages 363-365

Ellwood Shafting & Tubing Company was the first manufacturing institution to establish itself in Ellwood City in 1891 and
the first to manufacture seamless tubing in the United States. Just three years later in October 1894, the Ellwood
Shafting & Tube Company was sold to H.A. Lozier the "Bicycle King of America" and the name of the company was changed to
Ellwood Weldless Tube Company. The founder of Ellwood City, Henry W. Hartman was appointed vice president of the new
company. The Ellwood plant was only the second seamless tube plant in America. Also in 1894, Ralph C. Stiefel came to
the Ellwood City from England for the company. Along with becoming a stockholder in the company, Stiefel accepted the
position of general manager and introduced his own patented process for making seamless tubing. Ellwood Weldless became
the first company in the United States to make tubing by the Stiefel method making it one of the leaders in the tubing
industry.

From the time Ralph C. Stiefel accepted the position of Superintendent at Ellwood Seamless Tube Co. straight from
England, he was connected with the Shelby Seamless Tube Company until 1899. At that time along with J.H. Nicholson, he
left the Shelby Company and erected the Standard Seamless Tube Company with some friends in Ellwood City and was in
direct competition with Shelby Seamless. The National Steel Tube Co. bought the Standard Company in 1901.

Soon after National purchased Standard, the United States Steel Corporation absorbed National Tube and at the end of June
1901, it also absorbed the Shelby Steel Tube Company and Mr. Stiefel was made General Superintendent of all the plants
in the country. Now all the seamless tube works were now conducted under the name of the Shelby Steel Tube Company.

In 1905, the U.S. Steel Ellwood plant consolidated Shelby Steel Tube Company (Mill A) and National Steel Tube Company
(Mill B) and became National Tube Company (a subsidiary of United States Steel Corporation). After a fire destroyed the
Shelby Ohio Works plant in 1908, all the seamless tube works was produced in Ellwood City. Due to the growth, the
Ellwood City Works of the National Tube Company expanded to 127 acres (510,000 m2) in total with 23 acres (93,000 m2)
under a roof. The plants were served by direct connection with the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and by the Pittsburgh &
Lake Erie Railroad. The Ellwood Works had an annual capacity of 350,000 gross tons of tubular goods in 1942. Employment
during World War II reached 4,000 employees.

August 1, 1946 an announcement was made that operations at the Ellwood Works would be phased out over a three year
period. The closing was avoided and 1959 saw major expansion adding two new structures for stainless steel adding 40,000
square feet (3,700 m2) more. In 1974, U.S. Steel closed its doors in Ellwood City and the last seamless tube was
produced at the National Tube Company. When the plant closed employment had dipped down to a little over one thousand
people.

The city was linked to New Castle and Pittsburgh in 1908 and Beaver Falls in 1914 by the Pittsburgh, Harmony, Butler and
New Castle Railway, an interurban trolley line. The line to New Castle closed on June 15, 1931 and Pittsburgh on August
15, 1931 with the trolleys replaced by buses.

Notable Natives And Residents