Supervisors, Owners, and Managers
Big changes transformed the iron industry after the Civil War. In the early 1800s the ironmaster headed his small team of workers at his stone furnace out in the country.
Railroads needed much more iron than these small furnaces could produce. In the 1850s, businessmen like Daniel Morrell built many furnaces near the railroad tracks and hired many ironmasters and their crews to work one big factory.
Then, the railroads wanted steel -- a stronger form of iron -- and lots of it! William Kelly in Johnstown and Henry Bessemer in England figured out how to convert large batches of iron into steel. The Kelly and Bessemer Converters were huge machines and many more workers who didn't need to know all the steps of making iron, like the old ironmaster did. Instead, engineers created the chemical "recipes" for steel and designed the machinery to make it. Supervisors and foremen hired and trained the workers. Managers and executives made the deals to sell the products and buy raw materials to make more. They didn't work in the factories; they worked in offices downtown. The workers called them the "bosses" or "management." How were the jobs and lives of the bosses different from the workers'?
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Daniel Morrell was the manager of Cambria Iron who financed William Kelly. |
Daniel Morrell made the decision to invest heavily in Bessemer Converters to move Cambria Iron into the forefront of steel production in the nation. |
George S. King organized a primitive iron furnace along the Millcreek and later organized Cambria Iron. |
William Kelly developed a process similar to the Bessemer process for transforming iron into steel in large quantities. Kelly developed his process at Johnstown Iron. |
Captain Bill Jones started his steel career at Cambria Steel before he was recruited by Andrew Carnegie in PIttsburgh. |
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John Fritz, and his brother George, developed the three-high roller that increased steel production at Cambria Steel. |
The Cambria Iron offices were located in this building on Washington Street. The building still stands today. |
Arthur J. Moxham is seated in the center of the front row. He founded the Johnson Steel Company. |
These were the Cambria Iron office managers located in Philadelphia. Edward Y. Townsend is the gentleman standing on the far right. |
Daniel Morrell's house was located on Main St. It occupied the entire block of Main Street that currently holds the Cambria County Library. |
These houses were owned by Cambria Iron officials. |
This is a view of Westmont early on in its construction. This neighborhood is now complete with enormous, grand homes. |
This is the Cambria Iron country club. |
The Cambria Iron country club had its own tennis court. |
