Weirton Steel Corporation

The founding of Weirton in 1909 began with the purchase of the Phillips Sheet and Tin Plate Company in 1905 in Clarksburg by E.T. Weir and J.R. Phillips. In their search to find a place with more space and to have better availability for steel markets in the east and to make a fully integrated plant, they came to Weirton. They found the green valley with its orchards, the Ohio River below, and a railroad built in 1864 through Hollidays Cove from Steubenville, Ohio to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Their dream came true when they acquired 106 acres from Cyrus Ferguson, an old settler. They bought more acreage which amounted to about 1,200 acres. That same year they constructed the first mill; the mill grew rapidly thereafter.

In World War II, Weirton Steel went to town under the leadership of Thomas Millsop. War steel was turned out in record tonnages, and when many companies would not attempt some of the jobs that had to be done, or had tried them and failed, Weirton took them on. Shortly after receiving specifications for shells from the Army, the first carload of 8 inch howitzer shells was shipped from Weirton. The first month's production was 12,500 shells, then it was up to 53,000, then 64,000, and finally over 70,000. After that, the Navy wanted magnesium sheets rolled. Magnesium sheets never had been rolled anywhere before. Weirton did it and won a Navy ordnance award. The company and its employees went far afield in other war work and won Army and Navy production awards.

Weirton Steel continued to grow and prosper during the 1950s, 60s, and 70. However, in 1982 with over 2,300 employees laid off and production at 60 percent, Weirton Steel, like the rest of the industry, was hurting. On March 2, National Steel announced it would no longer invest capital in the Weirton division. A plan evolved to sell the mill to the workers through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), which received huge community support and nationwide attention. On September 23, 1983, the Weirton Steel union members voted overwhelmingly to approve the ESOP, and the new company took over the mill on January 11, 1984. At one time the largest ESOP in the world, Weirton has been a model for subsequent ESOPs worldwide.