The Long Downturn: How American Blast Furnace Steelmaking Came Apart
Sherman Cahal
Weirton's 2024 shutdown was the final blow in a slow 60-year decline: how "mini" mills, legacy costs, and lost marketshare undid American blast furnace steel.
mid-atlantic
Exploring Kenova: Where Steel, Mine Cars, and Insulators Once Stood
Sherman Cahal
A century ago, a stretch of riverfront in Kenova, West Virginia was home to a revolving door of industry, a steel company that collapsed within two years, a mine car manufacturer born from merger, and a spark plug maker turned insulator giant that survived two bankruptcies and a devastating fire....
Discovering Earnshaw: A Forgotten Community in Wetzel County
Sherman Cahal
While traveling late at night to a campsite in rural northern West Virginia, I did a double-take when I passed what looked like an abandoned general store and hotel.
The Steel Mills of the Wheeling District
Sherman Cahal
Explore the history of the Wheeling, West Virginia, iron and steel district, from its early nail mills to its long decline.
Tracing Wheeling’s Lost Railroad: the Wheeling Terminal Railway
Sherman Cahal
In 2016, I spent a day tracing the remnants of the former Wheeling Terminal Railway across the hills surrounding downtown Wheeling, West Virginia.
Backroads and Bygone Places in Washington County
Sherman Cahal
On a snow-covered winter afternoon in Washington County, Pennsylvania, I followed rural backroads to document a handful of historic landmarks.
Inside a Charcoal Blast Furnace: Ironmaking in the 1800s
Sherman Cahal
A 19th-century pig iron blast furnace was more than a single stack: it was a carefully engineered industrial system built into the landscape itself.