National Tube Works
N 40° 21.127 W 079° 51.631
17T E 596765 N 4467463
Pennsylvania State Historical Marker located on Lysle Blvd. in McKeesport, Pennsylvania commemorating the site of the National Tube Works.
Waymark Code: WM1BWH
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 03/28/2007
Views: 176
MARKER TEXT: 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.
This is a traditional blue and gold roadside marker in front of the Port Authority Transit Terminal on Lysle Blvd. in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. Yet another giant South Western Pennsylvania plant closed that at one time was a world leader—in this case the production of pipe and tubing. The remaining buildings are administered by the RIDC which has transformed the closed plant into a industrial park. Its largest tenant is EchoStar Satellite LLC. (See link below). ExplorePAhistory.com has a nice write up on the history of the plant. (See Webpage below). The University of Pittsburgh has a collection of material on the plant (see link below). Be sure to check out the cart of pipe setting near the sign. These sites are always sad reminders to us of the glory days of the Pittsburgh region of our childhood. This plant supported a lot of families, and now it is gone--vaporized by bean counters and the bottom line. Very sad. Well at least some of the buildings are still supporting businesses—not as depressing as the collection of smoke stacks in Homestead.
LINKS:
University of Pittsburgh: Workers at US Steel's National Works
McKeesport, PA 1870 - 1960 : (
visit link)
Tube City Online: Info about McKeesport: (
visit link)
Pittsburgh Post Gazette: “Shuttered USX National Tube Works considered as eco-park site” : (
visit link)
EchoStar: Employment Opportunities: (
visit link)