150 CHARLES M. SCHWAB 



years, however, being about $57. Since that time prices have 

 declined steadily, the average for the last twenty years being 

 about $33, and since 1890, $26 per ton. 



This somewhat discursive bit of history is interesting in 

 this connection as showing the growth of the most important 

 branch of the American steel industry, in which Mr. Carnegie 

 and the Edgar Thomson works have been the leading factors. 

 For many years after the introduction of the Bessemer process 

 in the United States (1864), the product was used in the 

 manufacture of T rails almost exclusively, but gradually 

 it supplanted puddled iron for structural purposes and the 

 manufacture of rods, nails (1883), and other finished forms. 

 The increased demand for Bessemer steel arising from this 

 evolution was met, or in many cases anticipated, by Mr. 

 Carnegie and his associates, and from time to time the works 

 were enlarged or other steel plants and rolling mills purchased. 



The Homestead steel works, built in 1880-1 by the Pitts- 

 burg Bessemer Steel company, and the Duquesne steel works, 

 built in 1886-8, were thus acquired. Both plants had small 

 Bessemer converters and rail trains originally, but the rolling 

 of rails at Homestead was discontinued in a short time, and 

 at different periods subsequently other lines were taken up, 

 including the open hearth steel making process, the rolling 

 of steel structural shapes, ship and tank plate, and the forging 

 of warship armor. The Duquesne plant has also been en- 

 larged, and now includes four of the largest blast furnaces in 

 operation, while an extensive plant for making open hearth 

 steel is under construction, in addition to several rolling mills. 



The growth of the Homestead works has probably been 

 more rapid than any like establishment in the world, and 

 may be ascribed largely to the extended use in recent years 

 of basic open hearth steel. The first open hearth plant, 

 built at Homestead in 1886, comprised a small number of 

 basic and acid furnaces. The acid process was after a thor- 

 ough trial discarded entirely, and additional basic furnaces 

 were constructed. The open hearth steel production of 

 the whole United States in 1886 amounted to only 218,973 

 tons, as against 2,269,190 tons of Bessemer. In one year 

 the Homestead works produced about 1,000,000 tons, or 



