Ode to Westwood: Twin Bridges
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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This cache is another in the series Ode to Westwood named for "twin bridges" located just near the cache.
Just across the highway from this cache is what was formerly known as Armco, which you can read about below.This road leads into what is known as Lower Millseat and if you follow the road up the hill towards Upper
Millseat then you can enjoy another cache in the series. If you are entering from 23 to the cache site,
please pull just to the end of this small bridge to pull off and if you are exiting to 23 then you will find a small pull off right in front of the cache. Please put cache back exactly how you found it.
Armco
One of the largest industrial developments in Ashland was announced in 1920. President George M. Verity, president of Armco, proposed to construct a steel mill. When it was completed on October 19, 1923, it featured a continuous rolling method to produce steel sheets, the first of its kind in the nation. Armco later purchased the old Ashland Steel Company, followed by the Norton Iron Works and the old Ironton Furnaces.
In 1920, Armco employed 3,600 but just eighteen years later, that had increased to 5,500. In 1954, the payroll increased to 7,500 before decreasing to 4,500 by 1972, 3,500 in 1982, 1,630 by 1986 and just 700 by 1992.
In 1925, the Ashland Culvert Works company was founded, later purchased by Armco and renamed to the Armco Drainage and Metal Products Company.
On March 12, 1941, ground was broken for the Bellefonte Furnace. Completed in 1942 at a cost of $5 million, it produced 1,000/tons of steel per day.
In 1950, a $40 million expansion was completed. A new hot-strip mill was opened on May 20, 1953 that employed 3,000.One year later, a cold reduction mill, strip pickler, light gauge zincgrip and a heavy gauge zincgrip was completed at a cost of $12 million. At the close of the 1950s, Armco announced another $95 million upgrade, later upgraded to $145 million. In 1963, the Amanda blast furnace was completed as part of the upgrade.
In August 1984, Tom Gorder became the president of Armco's Ashland Works. Trying to stem the loss of 2,000 jobs in 10 years, he stated he would help consolidate Ashland and Middletown, Ohio's steel mills together in an effort to improve efficiency. That resulted in the closure of the hot strip mill, however, a new slab caster was constructed that provided steel slabs for Middletown. The hot strip mill's closure in 1992, however, eliminated 930 jobs. The Sinter plant, cold strip mill, temper mills, pickling lines, annealing lines and machine shop all closed by 1995.
In May 1989, Armco sold 40 percent of its company to Kawasaki Steel of Japan; the remainder was sold in 1994 and the plant was renamed for AK Steel.
ENJOY!!!!
Additional Hints
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