![matthewnewton:
Read or Regret, Vol. I: Hard Truths and Unshakable Horrors
The first installment in a new (occasional) column I’ll be writing over at Annals of Americus called ‘Read or Regret,’ which collects recommended nonfiction reading.
Since I first started reading comic books as a kid — most memorably, a dusty stack of 1970s-era Captain Americas and Spider-Mans I inherited from my sister’s best friend — my obsessive nature always sends me sifting through any stash of old books or magazines that I encounter.
A month or so back, for example, I unearthed a copy ofThe Soul of America (1986) — Esquire‘s state-by-state look at life in 1980s America. A Ken Kesey essay on rodeo culture in Kansas is what prompted me to buy the book, but after paging through the table of contents some more, I discovered a story written by Lynn Darling titled “True Blue.” The story, which looks at the demise of the famed National Works steel mill in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, is told from the vantage point of laid-off steelworker Falco Paterra. Darling traces Paterra’s career arc from part-timer at National Works to his eventual promotion to night-shift manager — a role he cherished. Darling tells of how Paterra’s demanding work schedule caused him to miss every holiday and his son’s games and his daughters’ dances. Later in the story, however, Paterra is demoted and relegated to janitorial work, before losing his job altogether. It’s a hard-truth story, but one that became typical given the omnipresence of the steel industry — and its decline — in and around the city of Pittsburgh.
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[Photo: National Works in McKeesport, Pennsylvania via Donald Harrison]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m2zdnbpHK61qzjp43o1_500.jpg)
Read or Regret, Vol. I: Hard Truths and Unshakable Horrors
The first installment in a new (occasional) column I’ll be writing over at Annals of Americus called ‘Read or Regret,’ which collects recommended nonfiction reading.
Since I first started reading comic books as a kid — most memorably, a dusty stack of 1970s-era Captain Americas and Spider-Mans I inherited from my sister’s best friend — my obsessive nature always sends me sifting through any stash of old books or magazines that I encounter.
A month or so back, for example, I unearthed a copy ofThe Soul of America (1986) — Esquire‘s state-by-state look at life in 1980s America. A Ken Kesey essay on rodeo culture in Kansas is what prompted me to buy the book, but after paging through the table of contents some more, I discovered a story written by Lynn Darling titled “True Blue.” The story, which looks at the demise of the famed National Works steel mill in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, is told from the vantage point of laid-off steelworker Falco Paterra. Darling traces Paterra’s career arc from part-timer at National Works to his eventual promotion to night-shift manager — a role he cherished. Darling tells of how Paterra’s demanding work schedule caused him to miss every holiday and his son’s games and his daughters’ dances. Later in the story, however, Paterra is demoted and relegated to janitorial work, before losing his job altogether. It’s a hard-truth story, but one that became typical given the omnipresence of the steel industry — and its decline — in and around the city of Pittsburgh.
[Photo: National Works in McKeesport, Pennsylvania via Donald Harrison]
Raymond Simboli: Pinkerton Riot, Pittsburgh. 1948.
Simboli-McFadden Collection
Oil on Canvas
29.5” x 34.5”
Signed ‘R. Simboli’ (lower left corner)
Inv 1006
Simboli’s recreation on canvas of the 1892 Homestead Steel Strike. Around 1886, Homestead, a few miles from Pittsburgh along the Monongahela river, was the heart of the U.S. Steel Industry. Carnegie Steel, the central industry, did a lock out of its employees, creating great aggitation. Three hundred Pinkerton guards were sent out to quell some 5000 workers. This resulted in nine deaths, many injuries, and shortly after, the arrest of Alexander Beckman, who had attempted to assassinate the plant manager, Henry Clay Frick.
![On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 16, 1946
The nationwide steel strike was virtually settled today, breaking one of the worst industrial crises in the country’s history.
The backbone of the 27-day-old strike was broken when the United Steelworkers(CIO) and United States Steel Corp. was settled last night approximating the terms proposed by President Truman four weeks ago. U.S. Steel historically sets the wage pattern for the entire basic steel industry. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lz4wefNMXm1qakblyo1_500.png)
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 16, 1946
The nationwide steel strike was virtually settled today, breaking one of the worst industrial crises in the country’s history.
The backbone of the 27-day-old strike was broken when the United Steelworkers(CIO) and United States Steel Corp. was settled last night approximating the terms proposed by President Truman four weeks ago. U.S. Steel historically sets the wage pattern for the entire basic steel industry. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
Read or Regret, Vol. I: Hard Truths and Unshakable Horrors
The first installment in a new (occasional) column I’ll be writing over at Annals of Americus called ‘Read or Regret,’ which collects recommended nonfiction reading.
Since I first started reading comic books as a kid — most memorably, a dusty stack of 1970s-era Captain Americas and Spider-Mans I inherited from my sister’s best friend — my obsessive nature always sends me sifting through any stash of old books or magazines that I encounter.
A month or so back, for example, I unearthed a copy ofThe Soul of America (1986) — Esquire‘s state-by-state look at life in 1980s America. A Ken Kesey essay on rodeo culture in Kansas is what prompted me to buy the book, but after paging through the table of contents some more, I discovered a story written by Lynn Darling titled “True Blue.” The story, which looks at the demise of the famed National Works steel mill in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, is told from the vantage point of laid-off steelworker Falco Paterra. Darling traces Paterra’s career arc from part-timer at National Works to his eventual promotion to night-shift manager — a role he cherished. Darling tells of how Paterra’s demanding work schedule caused him to miss every holiday and his son’s games and his daughters’ dances. Later in the story, however, Paterra is demoted and relegated to janitorial work, before losing his job altogether. It’s a hard-truth story, but one that became typical given the omnipresence of the steel industry — and its decline — in and around the city of Pittsburgh.
[Photo: National Works in McKeesport, Pennsylvania via Donald Harrison]
Raymond Simboli: Pinkerton Riot, Pittsburgh. 1948.
Simboli-McFadden Collection
Oil on Canvas
29.5” x 34.5”
Signed ‘R. Simboli’ (lower left corner)
Inv 1006Simboli’s recreation on canvas of the 1892 Homestead Steel Strike. Around 1886, Homestead, a few miles from Pittsburgh along the Monongahela river, was the heart of the U.S. Steel Industry. Carnegie Steel, the central industry, did a lock out of its employees, creating great aggitation. Three hundred Pinkerton guards were sent out to quell some 5000 workers. This resulted in nine deaths, many injuries, and shortly after, the arrest of Alexander Beckman, who had attempted to assassinate the plant manager, Henry Clay Frick.
![On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 16, 1946
The nationwide steel strike was virtually settled today, breaking one of the worst industrial crises in the country’s history.
The backbone of the 27-day-old strike was broken when the United Steelworkers(CIO) and United States Steel Corp. was settled last night approximating the terms proposed by President Truman four weeks ago. U.S. Steel historically sets the wage pattern for the entire basic steel industry. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lz4wefNMXm1qakblyo1_1280.png)
On This Day in Pittsburgh History: February 16, 1946 The nationwide steel strike was virtually settled today, breaking one of the worst industrial crises in the country’s history. The backbone of the 27-day-old strike was broken when the United Steelworkers(CIO) and United States Steel Corp. was settled last night approximating the terms proposed by President Truman four weeks ago. U.S. Steel historically sets the wage pattern for the entire basic steel industry. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
