The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steel and shipbuilding company that for much of the 20th century was one of the world's largest steel producing and shipbuilding companies. The company's roots trace to 1857 with the establishment of the Bethlehem Iron Company in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Bethlehem Steel was formed in 1904 through the merger of the earlier companies, and existed through the decline of American steel manufacturing during the 1970s until its bankruptcy in 2001 and final dissolution in 2003.
The Reading Company was a railroad in southeast Pennsylvania and neighboring states whose final iteration ran from 1924 until 1976, when it was absorbed by Conrail. The Reading’s oldest corporate predecessor, however, was the Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company incorporated, a canal company, making the Reading the oldest railroading corporation in the United States.
John Edgar Thomson was an American civil engineer and industrialist. An entrepreneur best known for his leadership of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) from 1852 until his death in 1874, Thomson made it the largest business enterprise in the world and a world-class model for technological and managerial innovation. The railroad's first Chief Engineer became its third President.
Colonel Robert Livingston Stevens was an American inventor and steamship builder who served as president of the Camden and Amboy Railroad in the 1830s and 1840s.
Samuel Vaughan Merrick (1801–1870) was a 19th-century American manufacturer, and the first president of the Pennsylvania Railroad.
Neafie, Levy & Co., commonly known as Neafie & Levy, was a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania shipbuilding and engineering firm that existed from the middle of the 19th to the beginning of the 20th century. Described as America's "first specialist marine engineers", Neafie & Levy was probably the first company in the United States to combine the building of iron ships with the manufacture of steam engines to power them. The company was also the largest supplier of screw propellers to other North American shipbuilding firms in its early years, and at its peak in the early 1870s was Philadelphia's busiest and most heavily capitalized shipbuilder.
George Henry Corliss was an American mechanical engineer and inventor, who developed the Corliss steam engine, which was a great improvement over any other stationary steam engine of its time. The Corliss engine is widely considered one of the more notable engineering achievements of the 19th century. It provided a reliable, efficient source of industrial power, enabling the expansion of new factories to areas which did not readily possess reliable or abundant water power. Corliss gained international acclaim for his achievements during the late 19th century and is perhaps best known for the Centennial Engine, which was the centerpiece of the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia.
William Sellers was a mechanical engineer, manufacturer, businessman, and inventor who filed more than 90 patents, most notably the design for the United States standard screw thread. As president of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sellers proposed the adoption of a system of screw threads which was easier for ordinary mechanics and machinists to cut than a similar design by Joseph Whitworth. For many years, he led the machine tool firm of William Sellers & Co., which was a very influential machine tool builder during the latter half of the 19th century.
Dialogue & Company was a shipbuilding firm located in the Port of Camden on the Delaware River in New Jersey. It was founded by John H. Dialogue.
The Pennsylvania class steamships—Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois—were a class of four cargo-passenger liners built by the Philadelphian shipbuilder William Cramp & Sons in 1872–73. Intended for the newly established American Line, the four ships were at the time the largest iron ships yet built in the United States, and were launched with considerable fanfare. Upon entering service in 1874, they also became the first American-built steamships to challenge British dominance of the transatlantic trade since the American Civil War.
SS Pennsylvania was an iron passenger-cargo steamship built by William Cramp & Sons in 1872. The first of a series of four Pennsylvania-class vessels and the lead ship in her class, Pennsylvania and her three sister ships—Ohio, Indiana and Illinois—were the largest iron ships ever built in the United States at the time of their construction, and amongst the first to be fitted with compound steam engines. They were also the first ships to challenge British dominance of the transatlantic trade since the American Civil War.
SS Ohio was an iron passenger-cargo steamship built by William Cramp & Sons in 1872. The second of a series of four Pennsylvania-class vessels, Ohio and her three sister ships—Pennsylvania, Indiana and Illinois—were the largest iron ships ever built in the United States at the time of their construction, and amongst the first to be fitted with compound steam engines. They were also the first ships to challenge British dominance of the transatlantic trade since the American Civil War.
SS Indiana was an iron passenger-cargo steamship built by William Cramp & Sons in 1873. The third of a series of four Pennsylvania-class vessels, Indiana and her three sister ships – Pennsylvania, Ohio and Illinois – were the largest iron ships ever built in the United States at the time of their construction, and among the first to be fitted with compound steam engines. They were also the first ships to challenge British dominance of the transatlantic trade since the American Civil War.
SS Illinois was an iron passenger-cargo steamship built by William Cramp & Sons in 1873. The last of a series of four Pennsylvania-class vessels, Illinois and her three sister ships—Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana—were the largest iron ships ever built in the United States at the time of their construction, and amongst the first to be fitted with compound steam engines. They were also the first ships to challenge British dominance of the transatlantic trade since the American Civil War.
Reaney, Son & Archbold was a 19th-century American iron shipbuilding company located on the Delaware River at Chester, Pennsylvania. The company was established in 1859 by Thomas Reaney but it was undercapitalized from the outset, and like many other American shipbuilding companies, fell victim to the shipbuilding slump that followed the American Civil War.
The Delaware River Iron Ship Building and Engine Works, was a major late-19th-century American shipyard located on the Delaware River in Chester, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the industrialist John Roach and is often referred to by its parent company name of John Roach & Sons, or just known as the Roach shipyard. For the first fifteen years of its existence, the shipyard was by far the largest and most productive in the United States, building more tonnage of ships than its next two major competitors combined, in addition to being the U.S. Navy's largest contractor. The yard specialized in the production of large passenger freighters, but built every kind of vessel from warships to cargo ships, oil tankers, ferries, barges, tugs and yachts.
John Roach & Sons was a major 19th-century American shipbuilding and manufacturing firm founded in 1864 by Irish-American immigrant John Roach. Between 1871 and 1885, the company was the largest shipbuilding firm in the United States, building more iron ships than its next two major competitors combined. It was also by far the largest contractor to the U.S. Navy during this period, and at its peak is said to have been the nation's largest employer behind the railroads.
Alexander C. Stuart (1831–1898) was a British-born American painter, specializing in naval scenes. He grew up in Glasgow, served in the British Army, and immigrated to US around 1861. Since then lived and worked on the East Coast of the United States. In the US he served in the Marines and the Navy (Union) until 1866; since then he worked as an artist and illustrator.
Isaac Dripps was an American machinist and inventor. He worked on the locomotive John Bull and built seven locomotives. Dripps was a superintendent and partner of various railroad machinery shops. He has several patents to his name.
