Today in Wheeling History: July 3--Stockholders approve consolidation of Whitaker-Glessner Co., Wheeling Steel and Iron, and La Belle Iron Works into Wheeling Steel Corporation (1920).
Wheeling Steel Corporation was created at a pivotal moment in Wheeling’s industrial rise. On July 3, 1920, stockholders of Whitaker‑Glessner, Wheeling Steel & Iron, and La Belle Iron Works approved a merger that unified mills, blast furnaces, tin plate operations, and finishing plants stretching from Wheeling and Benwood to Martins Ferry and Portsmouth. The new corporation became one of America’s major steel producers, employing more than 17,000 workers at its peak and manufacturing black plate, tin plate, cut nails, steel pipe, sheet steel, cans, pails, stoves, and countless industrial products. Wheeling Steel also shaped national culture through its WWVA radio program "It’s Wheeling Steel," broadcast from 1936 to 1944 and featuring employee talent from across its plants.
In 1968, Wheeling Steel merged with Pittsburgh Steel to form Wheeling‑Pittsburgh Steel, continuing operations through decades of industry contraction, foreign competition, and technological change. The company entered bankruptcy multiple times between the 1980s and early 2000s, eventually being acquired by Esmark in 2007 and then by Russia’s OAO Severstal in 2008. In 2011, RG Steel purchased the former Wheeling‑Pitt assets, but the company collapsed the following year. Today, most former Wheeling Steel sites have been demolished, repurposed, or redeveloped, though the Beech Bottom and Yorkville facilities continue limited operations under new ownership. The legacy of the 1920 consolidation remains central to Wheeling’s identity, labor history, and industrial heritage.
To learn more: Ohio County Public Library – Wheeling Steel Corporation Collection (https://tinyurl.com/yc4c27t8), Ohio County Public Library – Whitaker-Glessner Co. history (https://tinyurl.com/mr28p9tz), e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia – “Wheeling Steel” (https://tinyurl.com/4svm4aj3), Weelunk (https://tinyurl.com/4xs9u9st), Company History – Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corporation (https://tinyurl.com/3p3mhw7f), Wikipedia - Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel (https://tinyurl.com/bddffhnz), Flickr - Ohio County Public Library - Wheeling Steel (https://tinyurl.com/5heuckej)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Wikimedia Commons, Weelunk, e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia Online
Wheeling Steel Corporation was created at a pivotal moment in Wheeling’s industrial rise. On July 3, 1920, stockholders of Whitaker‑Glessner, Wheeling Steel & Iron, and La Belle Iron Works approved a merger that unified mills, blast furnaces, tin plate operations, and finishing plants stretching from Wheeling and Benwood to Martins Ferry and Portsmouth. The new corporation became one of America’s major steel producers, employing more than 17,000 workers at its peak and manufacturing black plate, tin plate, cut nails, steel pipe, sheet steel, cans, pails, stoves, and countless industrial products. Wheeling Steel also shaped national culture through its WWVA radio program "It’s Wheeling Steel," broadcast from 1936 to 1944 and featuring employee talent from across its plants.
In 1968, Wheeling Steel merged with Pittsburgh Steel to form Wheeling‑Pittsburgh Steel, continuing operations through decades of industry contraction, foreign competition, and technological change. The company entered bankruptcy multiple times between the 1980s and early 2000s, eventually being acquired by Esmark in 2007 and then by Russia’s OAO Severstal in 2008. In 2011, RG Steel purchased the former Wheeling‑Pitt assets, but the company collapsed the following year. Today, most former Wheeling Steel sites have been demolished, repurposed, or redeveloped, though the Beech Bottom and Yorkville facilities continue limited operations under new ownership. The legacy of the 1920 consolidation remains central to Wheeling’s identity, labor history, and industrial heritage.
To learn more: Ohio County Public Library – Wheeling Steel Corporation Collection (https://tinyurl.com/yc4c27t8), Ohio County Public Library – Whitaker-Glessner Co. history (https://tinyurl.com/mr28p9tz), e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia – “Wheeling Steel” (https://tinyurl.com/4svm4aj3), Weelunk (https://tinyurl.com/4xs9u9st), Company History – Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corporation (https://tinyurl.com/3p3mhw7f), Wikipedia - Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel (https://tinyurl.com/bddffhnz), Flickr - Ohio County Public Library - Wheeling Steel (https://tinyurl.com/5heuckej)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Wikimedia Commons, Weelunk, e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia Online
RSS Feed