National Tube Works
McKeesport, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Incorporated 1869, the works began production here, 1872. By 1901, when it became a subsidiary of U.S. Steel, this was the world's largest pipe producer. Major advances in inspection techniques originated here. Plant operations ceased in 1987.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Incorporated in 1869 and in production here at McKeesport by 1872, the National Tube Works grew into the largest pipe manufacturer in the world, its mills feeding the oil fields, waterworks, and factories of an industrializing nation. Absorbed into U.S. Steel in 1901, the plant pioneered advances in pipe inspection before its long run ended when operations ceased in 1987.
Why it matters
The rise and fall of National Tube traces the whole arc of American heavy industry along the Monongahela—boom, consolidation into the great steel trust, and the deindustrialization that reshaped the valley.
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Related events
- · Absorption into U.S. Steel (1901)
- · Plant closure (1987)
Themes & tags
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