Inland Steel Company
# Inland Steel Company

41°40′06″N 87°26′25″W﻿ / ﻿41.6684°N 87.4402°W﻿ / 41.6684; -87.4402

The Inland Steel Company was an American steel company active in 1893–1998. Its history as an independent firm thus spanned much of the 20th century. It was headquartered in Chicago at the landmark Inland Steel Building.

Inland Steel was an integrated steel company that reduced iron ore to steel. Its sole steel mill was located in East Chicago, Indiana, on the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal and a large landfill protruding out into Lake Michigan. The steel mill's shoreline location enabled it to take in steelmaking commodities, such as iron ore, coal, and limestone, by lake freighter. Throughout much of its life, Inland Steel operated its own fleet of bulk carrier vessels.

Inland Steel was founded by Jewish owners because of anti-Semitism in the steel industry, and thereby provided employment to other Jewish workers.

## Firm history

Inland Steel was founded in 1893 through the purchase, by financier Philip Block, of a small failed Chicago Heights steel mill, Chicago Steel Works. The Block family led Inland Steel's recovery and, in 1901, Inland Steel pledged to raise more than $1 million to build an open-hearth mill in East Chicago. This expansion caused the firm to grow more than tenfold in size, from 250 workers in 1897 to 2,600 in 1910.

Inland Steel continued to face heavy competition from U.S. Steel, the Pittsburgh-based giant that at that time possessed a dominant share of the U.S. steel market. World wars increased steel demand and pushed Inland Steel forward. In 1917 (World War I), Inland Steel's production broke the 1.0-million ton (0.9m tonne) mark for the first time; and in 1930 the firm completed a new office headquarters in East Chicago, which survives. By World War II the Chicago-area steelmaker had 14,000 employees and was producing 3.4 million tons (3.0m tonnes) per year.

Starting in the 1950s, Inland Steel specialized in cold-rolled sheet and strip steel for motor vehicles. In 1956–1957, the successful firm constructed a new corporate headquarters, the Inland Steel Building, in downtown Chicago. Employment at the Indiana Harbor mill rose toward its peak of 25,000 in 1969.

The decline in the U.S. steel industry, starting in 1970, affected Inland Steel. Foreign steel companies were increasing their presence in the world steel market. During the late 1970s Inland Steel formed several joint ventures with Nippon Steel to create I/N Tek and I/N Kote, but profitability continued to be difficult to attain. After a series of internal reforms, Inland rapidly became so profitable in 1997 that, uniquely amongst U.S. integrated steel mills, they became desirable for acquisition. Ispat International acquired Inland Steel in 1998 eventually becoming ArcelorMittal. As of 2020, the assets of Inland Steel are now part of Cleveland-Cliffs.

## Facilities

This list is not yet very complete.

August 1902, plant at Indiana Harbor has been put into operation. Headquarters were in the Marquette Building in Chicago.

March 1903, shareholders vote to increase stock from $2,000,000 to $2,500,000. G.H. Jones is president.

August 1906, a new 50 acre tract with 4000 feet water frontage was acquired next to the existing plant. Also acquired was the Laura mine on the Mesaba range from Alexis W. Thompson, former president of Republic Iron & Steel. The 5th open hearth furnace had just been completed and the daily capacity of open hearth steel was 500 tons. With capital stock increased from $2,500,000 to $5,000,000 further additions to be made are 2 modern blast furnaces and a 6th open hearth furnace (50 tons).

The "Madeline" blast furnace with a rated capacity of 350 tons/day was blown in on August 31, 1907. The Iron Age 3-page article (January 10, 1908):

April 1912, Madeline No. 2, 366 feet north of and slightly larger than No. 1, +5 stoves makes 9 stoves in one row between the 2 furnaces. 400 tons/day given as the maximum capacity of No. 1. 6-page article. 3 pages in Iron Age.

January 16, 1917, 44 Koppers Coke ovens commenced production, total at that point: 130 Koppers ovens, a Koppers by-product and benzol recovery plant.

April 24, 1917, blast furnace No. 3 with rated capacity of 500-600 tons/day was blown in.

On January 3, 1939, Madeline No. 5, new largest among Inland's furnaces was blown in with 1000 tons/day for a new total of 4000 tons/day. Built by Arthur G. McKee & Co, who had also built No. 1 in 1907.

todo: 1932 50,000tons/month 76-inch strip mill, 1933 tin mill, 1938 2.5 minutes per mile 44-inch strip mill, 59 coke ovens, 5 open hearth (+18%).

