Misplaced Pages

#756243

56-587: Established in 1902 in Butler , Pennsylvania by John M. Hansen and "Diamond Jim" Brady , the company quickly became one of the largest builders of steel cars in the United States . Pullman, Inc. purchased control of SSC in 1929 and merged it with Pullman Car & Manufacturing in 1934 to form Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company . The overnight success of the Pressed Steel Car Company at

112-526: A Superior Court and Sheriff (as an officer of the court ), both located in a designated "shire town". Bennington County, Vermont has two shire towns; the court for "North Shire" is in the shire town Manchester , and the Sheriff for the county and court for "South Shire" are in the shire town Bennington. In 2024, Connecticut , which had not defined their counties for anything but statistical, historical and weather warning purposes since 1960, along with ending

168-700: A steel hopper with side posts made from standard channel and angle shapes became the company's signature product, building over 7,500 through 1907. Expansion was immediate. Capacity was increased first to 60 cars a day, then 125 cars a day in 1903. Production peaked at 29,411 cars in 1907, 2,836 of those built in January of that year. In October of 1907, a ladle full of 9,000 lbs. of molten steel, exploded, killing 4 workers instantly, fatally wounding 20 others, and severely injuring 10 more. SSC would bounce back from this disaster. SSC's subsidiary, Standard Car Truck Company, opened at New Castle , Pennsylvania in 1906, and

224-430: A car should be cut and shaped (pressed) from sheet steel to minimize weight and the need for assemblies of small parts while maximizing strength. The custom stamping dies and assemblies needed for this work were expensive and uneconomical in small quantities. Hansen preferred to use standard steel shapes that were already widely available from the steel mills at economical cost. SSC's earliest production reflected this:

280-558: A common practice today. Pedestrians could cross in either direction. The city was linked to Pittsburgh via Mars, Pennsylvania , in 1907 by the Pittsburgh and Butler Street Railway , and to Evans City in 1908 by the Pittsburgh, Harmony, Butler and New Castle Railway , both interurban trolley lines. The Mars route closed in April 1931, followed by the Evans City line on August 15, 1931, with

336-532: A controversial monument stands near the courthouse commemorating Bantam's "creation of the Jeep". Butler is home to one of the early Ford dealerships, established in 1918 and still extant. At one point, the Rainbow Rubber Company, in the late 1930s, made "Rubrtoy" replicas of Oldsmobiles along with many other rubber toys. In the 1950s, Butler became one of the first cities to install bells at crosswalks ,

392-410: A county seat may be an independent city surrounded by, but not part of, the county of which it is the administrative center; for example, Fairfax City is both the county seat of Fairfax County, Virginia and completely surrounded by Fairfax County, but the city is politically independent of the county. When the county seat is in the independent city, government offices such as the courthouse may be in

448-526: A monopoly that was eventually broken by the federal government. About 2,500 workers produced 60 steel-bed railroad cars per day in 1902. Eastern European immigrants were lured to the area in the early 20th century with the promise of reliable jobs, which offered company housing and a company store. The company constructed a baseball park which was the home of a New York Yankees farm team. The steel workers of Butler made artillery and naval shells during World War II. The Pullman-Standard plant closed in 1982, but

504-461: A monument to the workers of Standard Steel Car Company and Pullman-Standard. SSC gained control of a number of other car builders during its existence. Butler, Pennsylvania Butler is a city and the county seat of Butler County, Pennsylvania , United States. It is 35 miles (56 km) north of Pittsburgh and part of the Greater Pittsburgh region. As of the 2020 census ,

560-897: A museum in 1966 and is run by the Butler County Historical Society. Butler is home to the Butler County Symphony Association, which performs at the Butler Intermediate High School auditorium. The city features artist groups including the Associated Artists of Butler County and the Butler Arts Council, which host galleries and live events at the Art Center, located on Main Street. Stewart O'Nan 's prizewinning 1994 novel Snow Angels

616-579: A second SSC plant opened at Hammond , Indiana in 1907. Hansen established a car shop in LaRochelle, France for SSC in 1917, and SSC also controlled a plant in Rio de Janeiro , Brazil . SSC also entered the field of automobile production in 1913 with the Standard Eight, which in 1919 had 83 horsepower (62 kW). Automobile production ended in 1921. "Diamond Jim" Brady died in 1917, and Hansen retired from

SECTION 10

#1732851636757

672-476: A second giant car builder to rival American Car & Foundry . Pullman continued to operate at Butler until it exited the railroad car business in 1982, and sold the plant to Trinity Industries in 1984. Trinity Industries left the plant in 1993, and in 2005 the plant had been completely demolished. In 2011, a jumbo grain car built by Pullman-Standard in June 1974, was restored and brought to Pullman Square, to serve as

728-531: Is an administrative center, seat of government , or capital city of a county or civil parish . The term is in use in five countries: Canada , China , Hungary , Romania , and the United States . An equivalent term, shire town , is used in the U.S. state of Vermont and in several other English-speaking jurisdictions, such as Venezuela . In Canada , the provinces of Ontario , Quebec , New Brunswick , Prince Edward Island , and Nova Scotia have counties as an administrative division of government below

784-570: Is an annual street fair that features ethnic foods, live music and events. The Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival, the Largest Jeep Festival in the US, is held annually in June with off-road trails, a Jeep Playground obstacle course, and the "original" Jeep Invasion street party. The following structures are listed in the National Register of Historic Places Other facilities: Additionally,

840-409: Is known as the seat of its county. Generally, the county legislature, county courthouse, sheriff's department headquarters, hall of records, jail and correctional facility are located in the county seat, though some functions (such as highway maintenance, which usually requires a large garage for vehicles, along with asphalt and salt storage facilities) may also be located or conducted in other parts of

896-572: Is served by the Butler Transit Authority , which operates local bus routes and a commuter service to Pittsburgh . Two railroads offer freight service in Butler. The Canadian National Railway -owned Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad main line passes through the city, while the Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad provides regional service in the area. The B&P has a large locomotive shop just outside

952-556: Is set in Butler, with the protagonist being a local high school student. However, the 2007 film adaption , shot in Canada, removes all references to Butler. Stephen King 's 2002 novel From A Buick 8 takes place in the area. The city was the setting for several scenes in the 2015 novel trilogy Benjamin's Field by local author J. J. Knights. The Butler Road Race, a 5-mile and 2-mile race held each summer in June, raises scholarship funding for local students. The Butler Italian Festival

1008-486: The 2000 census , there were 15,121 people, 6,740 households, and 3,626 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,611.3 inhabitants per square mile (2,166.5/km ). There were 7,402 housing units at an average density of 2,746.8 per square mile (1,060.5/km ). The racial makeup of the city was 93.6% White, 2.7% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.52% from other races, and 1.14% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.88% of

1064-698: The Butler Armory . Butler hosts annual events, such as the Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival and the Butler Italian Festival. Butler has faced economic changes, with manufacturing jobs becoming scarce by the end of the 1970s. However, the city has made efforts to revitalize its economy and community. Noteworthy employers include AK Steel , Butler Area School District , and VA Butler Healthcare . Butler gained international attention in July 2024 after

1120-724: The Mississippi River received more toxic materials than the Connoquenessing, making the small river the second most polluted waterway in the United States. At the time, the Armco Inc. steel facility in Butler ranked first nationally for the amount of pollutant discharges. However, by 2010, due to reduced industry and clean up efforts, the creek's health has significantly recovered and has become popular for water-sport activities. The city of Butler has six labeled neighborhoods: As of

1176-579: The assassination attempt against Donald Trump at the Butler Farm Show Grounds in nearby Connoquenessing Township . Butler was named for Maj. Gen. Richard Butler , who fell at the Battle of the Wabash , also known as St. Clair's Defeat, in western Ohio in 1791. In 1803, John and Samuel Cunningham became the first settlers in the village of Butler. After settling in Butler, the two brothers laid out

SECTION 20

#1732851636757

1232-407: The Butler area as being politically conservative. That year, Mayor Bob Dandoy, a Democrat, stated that the city limits has a higher concentration of non-Republicans compared to the surrounding county. According to Dandoy, "President Trump enjoys a lot of support here." Despite this support, in 2024, an attempted assassination of former president Donald Trump occurred at a rally near the town. He

1288-503: The Butler city jurisdiction. Nonetheless, Mayor of Butler Bob Dandoy stated that a lot of attention was focused on the city. According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has a total area of 2.7 square miles (7.0 km ), all land. Connoquenessing Creek is the only waterway to pass through the city. In 2000, a scientific study was conducted to determine the health of the creek. Researchers discovered that only

1344-521: The Park productions at Preston Park and other Butler county parks. The Maridon Museum is the only museum in the Western Pennsylvania region with a specific focus on Chinese and Japanese art and culture. The Little Red School House is a former one-room schoolhouse that taught students from 1839 to 1874. Throughout its history, it has been a post office, library and Red Cross headquarters. It became

1400-728: The Pullman-Standard plant closed in 1982, and the American Bantam Car Company struggled, eventually losing military contracts to larger companies. The Butler Area Public Library, built in 1921, was the last Carnegie library established in Pennsylvania. Butler is home to the Butler Little Theatre, which has been producing plays since 1941. Notable historical sites include the Butler County Courthouse and

1456-879: The United States, followed by Towson , the county seat of Baltimore County, Maryland . Likewise, some county seats may not be incorporated in their own right, but are located within incorporated municipalities. For example, Cape May Court House, New Jersey , though unincorporated, is a section of Middle Township , an incorporated municipality. In some states, often those that were among the original Thirteen Colonies , county seats include or formerly included "Court House" as part of their name, such as Spotsylvania Courthouse, Virginia . Most counties have only one county seat. However, some counties in Alabama , Arkansas , Georgia , Iowa , Kentucky , Massachusetts , Mississippi , Missouri , New Hampshire , New York , and Vermont have two or more county seats, usually located on opposite sides of

1512-403: The average family size was 2.96. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.7% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.9 males. The median income for a household in the city

1568-551: The city limits. Five major highways run through or near the city, providing links to other areas throughout Western Pennsylvania . The south terminus of Pennsylvania Route 38 is just north of the city at U.S. Route 422 . Route 422 skirts the city, to the north, on the Butler Bypass. PA 68 and PA 356 go straight through downtown, where they intersect with PA 8 (Butler's Main Street). In 2024, The New York Times characterized

1624-651: The community by drawing up plots of land for more incoming settlers. By 1817, the community was incorporated into a borough . The first settlers were of Irish or Scottish descent and were driving westward from Connecticut . In 1802, the German immigrants began arriving, with Detmar Basse settling in Jackson Township in 1802 and founding Zelienople the following year. After George Rapp arrived in 1805 and founded Harmony , larger numbers of settlers followed. John A. Roebling settled Saxonburg in 1832, by which time most of

1680-465: The company in 1901 to found SSC. With financial backing from Andrew Mellon , SSC was incorporated on January 2, 1902, broke ground for its new half-mile long plant in Butler in April, and produced its first car ( Chesapeake & Ohio 23001) in August. Hansen's carbuilding philosophy was the opposite of Pressed Steel Car founder Charles T. Schoen 's. Schoen believed that each part of

1736-517: The counties after his unification, there were about 1,000. Under the Eastern Han dynasty , the number of counties increased to above 1,000. About 1400 existed when the Sui dynasty abolished the commandery level (郡 jùn), which was the level just above counties, and demoted some commanderies to counties. In Imperial China, the county was a significant administrative unit because it marked the lowest level of

Standard Steel Car Company - Misplaced Pages Continue

1792-550: The county was filled with German settlers. Butler was incorporated into a city in 1918. The first Butler library originated in 1894 with the Literary Society of Butler in what is now known as the Little Red Schoolhouse. The Butler Area Public Library, built in 1921, was the last Carnegie library to be built in Pennsylvania . In the intervening 27, years the library was independently operated. From 1921 to 1941,

1848-418: The county, especially if it is geographically large. A county seat is usually an incorporated municipality . The exceptions include the county seats of counties that have no incorporated municipalities within their borders, such as Arlington County, Virginia , where the county seat is the entire county. Ellicott City , the county seat of Howard County, Maryland , is the largest unincorporated county seat in

1904-420: The county. Examples include Harrison County, Mississippi , which has both Biloxi and Gulfport as county seats, and Hinds County, Mississippi , which has both Raymond and the state capital of Jackson . The practice of multiple county seat towns dates from the days when travel was difficult. There have been few efforts to eliminate the two-seat arrangement, since a county seat is a source of civic pride for

1960-640: The early 20th century, Butler became an industrial hub, contributing significantly to the Steel Belt manufacturing region. The city was home to the Standard Steel Car Company , which opened in 1902 and manufactured some of the first all-steel railcars. This facility later became part of Pullman-Standard . Butler also housed the American Bantam Car Company , known for developing the original WWII Jeep . Despite these industrial advancements,

2016-533: The end of the 19th century spurred a flurry of competitors in the suddenly booming market for steel railroad cars. American Car & Foundry predecessor Michigan-Peninsular Car had produced steel frame cars beginning in 1897, American Steel Foundries produced steel cars in 1900, and the Cambria Steel Company opened a car plant at Johnstown , Pennsylvania in 1901. Pressed Steel Car's Chief Designer John M. Hansen and famed salesman "Diamond Jim" Brady left

2072-424: The imperial bureaucratic structure; in other words, it was the lowest level that the government reached. Government below the county level was often undertaken through informal non-bureaucratic means, varying between dynasties. The head of a county was the magistrate , who oversaw both the day-to-day operations of the county as well as civil and criminal cases. The current number of counties mostly resembled that of

2128-572: The increase of Han Chinese population in Taiwan, the number of counties also grew by time. By the end of Qing era, there were 11 counties in Taiwan. Protestant missionaries in China first romanized the term as hien . When Taiwan became a Japanese colony in 1895, the hierarchy of divisions also incorporated into the Japanese system in the period when Taiwan was under Japanese rule. By September 1945, Taiwan

2184-611: The independent city under an agreement, such as in Albemarle , or may in be enclaves of the county surrounded by the independent city, such as in Fairfax . Others, such as Prince William , have the courthouse in an enclave surrounded by the independent city and have the county government, the Board of Supervisors, in a different part of the county, far from the county seat. The following counties have their county seat in an independent city: Bedford

2240-732: The later years of the Qing dynasty . Changes of location and names of counties in Chinese history have been a major field of research in Chinese historical geography, especially from the 1960s to the 1980s. There are 1,355 counties in Mainland China out of a total of 2,851 county-level divisions. In Taiwan , the first counties were first established in 1661 by the Kingdom of Tungning . The later ruler Qing empire inherited this type of administrative divisions. With

2296-499: The library quadrupled the number of patrons served. In the early 1900s, Butler was a "Steel Belt" manufacturing and industrial area. It remains home to a Cleveland Cliffs Butler Works, formerly AK Steel Butler Works. In 1902, the Standard Steel Car Company opened one of its largest railcar manufacturing facilities in Butler, where it manufactured some of the first all-steel rail cars. Standard Steel Car Company merged with Pullman Palace Car Company in 1934, creating Pullman-Standard,

Standard Steel Car Company - Misplaced Pages Continue

2352-529: The population was 13,502. Butler is named after Major General Richard Butler , who died in the Battle of the Wabash in 1791. It was first settled in 1803 by John and Samuel Cunningham and incorporated as a borough in 1817 before becoming a city in 1918. Initially settled by Irish and Scottish immigrants, Butler saw a significant influx of German settlers in the early 19th century. Detmar Basse founded Zelienople in 1803, and George Rapp established Harmony in 1805, leading to further growth and development. In

2408-407: The population. There were 6,740 households, out of which 26.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.0% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.2% were non-families. 40.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and

2464-592: The presidency in 1923, succeeded by Colonel James Frank Drake. Hansen stayed on as board chairman until his death in December 1929. That same month, Pullman Inc. agreed to purchase SSC for 610,000 shares of Pullman stock (worth approximately $ 51 million) and $ 6 million in cash. SSC continued to operate independently for several years as the Great Depression brought business to an almost standstill. Merger with Pullman Car & Manufacturing in 1934 created Pullman-Standard,

2520-752: The provincial level, and thus county seats. In the provinces of Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia the term "shire town" is used in place of county seat. County seats in China are the administrative centers of the counties in the People's Republic of China . Xian have existed since the Warring States period and were set up nationwide by the Qin dynasty . The number of counties in China proper gradually increased from dynasty to dynasty. As Qin Shi Huang reorganized

2576-615: The school district once operated Butler Area Junior High School, later Butler Middle School, which closed in 2022, in Butler City. There are two airports located outside the city. Butler County Airport , in Penn Township , is used for general aviation and may accommodate large aircraft such as corporate jets. Butler Farm Show Airport , in Connoquenessing Township , is used by pilots with smaller, private aircraft. Butler

2632-764: The state's area, has no borough government or borough seat. One borough, the Lake and Peninsula Borough , has its borough seat located in another borough, namely King Salmon in Bristol Bay Borough . In Louisiana , which is divided into parishes rather than counties, county seats are referred to as "parish seats". In New England , counties have served mainly as dividing lines for the states' judicial systems. Rhode Island has no county level of government and thus no county seats, and Massachusetts has dissolved many but not all of its county governments. In Vermont , Massachusetts , and Maine county government consists only of

2688-416: The towns involved, along with providing employment opportunities. There are 33 counties with multiple county seats in 11 states: Alaska is divided into boroughs rather than counties; the county seat in these case is referred to as the "borough seat"; this includes six consolidated city-borough governments (one of which is styled as a "municipality"). The Unorganized Borough, Alaska , which covers 49% of

2744-580: The trolleys replaced by buses. In 1965, the founder of ISKCON, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, arrived by bus to preach Hinduism, staying with the Aggarwal family. Like most of the region, by the end of the 1970s, the local economy changed dramatically. Manufacturing virtually ended and well-paying jobs became scarce. On July 13, 2024, during a 2024 presidential campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds near Butler, former President Donald Trump

2800-538: The use of county seats in particular, will fully transition with the permission of the United States Census Bureau to a system of councils of government for the purposes of boundary definition and as county equivalents. Two counties in South Dakota , Oglala Lakota and Todd , have their county seat and government services centered in a neighboring county. Their county-level services are provided by Fall River County and Tripp County , respectively. In Virginia ,

2856-653: Was $ 25,154, and the median income for a family was $ 35,893. Males had a median income of $ 30,607 versus $ 20,950 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 16,457. About 14.7% of families and 19.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.8% of those under age 18 and 14.5% of those age 65 or over. Major employers: The Butler Little Theatre has been running productions continuously since 1941. The Musical Theater Guild produces an annual musical production. In 2012, Hobnob Theatre Company began producing several plays, including an annual production of Charles Dickens ' A Christmas Carol and Shakespeare in

SECTION 50

#1732851636757

2912-568: Was divided into 8 prefectures ( 州 and 廳 ), which remained after the Republic of China took over. There are 13 county seats in Taiwan, which function as county-administered cities , urban townships , or rural townships . In most of the United States , a county is an administrative or political subdivision of a state that consists of a geographic area with specific boundaries and usually some level of governmental authority. The city, town, or populated place that houses county government

2968-449: Was headquartered in the area. Later the firm changed its name to American Bantam Car Company. Bantam was an early producer of small fuel-efficient vehicles through the 1930s. In 1940, lead engineer Karl Probst led Bantam design team to create what later was termed the iconic WWII Jeep . Sizeable military contracts eventually went to Willys and Ford, as the Bantam factory had floundered. Today,

3024-593: Was hit and injured in the ear. The assassin, perched just outside the security perimeter, was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper. Even though the event took place outside of city limits in Butler Township , the City of Butler issued a statement expressing sympathy for the death of Corey Comperatore , a firefighter caught in the line of fire, and for the attempt on Trump's life. Major League Baseball : National Football League : County seat A county seat

3080-545: Was purchased in 1984 by Trinity Industries . Trinity Industries left the factory in 1993, and the factory was completely demolished in 2005. The site is now occupied by a vacant strip mall , as well as the Butler Transit Authority inter-modal facility. In 2011 the BTA moved a covered hopper rail-car, built in 1974, to the bus terminal in recognition of the former Pullman-Standard plant. The American Austin Car Company (1929–1941)

3136-442: Was wounded in his right ear from an attempted assassination , during which one audience member was killed and two others severely injured in the gunfire. Thomas Matthew Crooks , the perpetrator, was promptly killed by a Secret Service Counter Assault Team sniper. Trump was swiftly transported to Butler Memorial Hospital and treated there, before being flown out of Pittsburgh International Airport . The incident occurred outside of

#756243