John Fritz, Iron and Steel Pioneer

The man who transformed American steelmaking was born about a mile and a half northeast of here in eighteen twenty-two. John Fritz grew up without formal engineering schooling, yet his mechanical instincts remade an industry. At the Cambria Iron Works in Johnstown he introduced the three-high rolling mill, an innovation that dramatically cut costs and increased output.

He later moved to Bethlehem Steel, where he adapted the Bessemer process for American conditions and developed superior armor plate for the United States Navy. His peers called him the dean of American engineers, and in nineteen oh two he received the first John Fritz Medal, an award now considered the highest honor in engineering. A farm boy who never stopped tinkering, Fritz died in nineteen thirteen having watched America's steel output become the largest in the world.