| Free Indeed - Part 6 : Vulcan in Pittsburgh Although known as the "Pittsburgh of the South", the output of Birmingham steel was never a match for the mammoth production of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After researching the influence of Vulcan in Birmingham, and because of his strong association with the forge, I started looking for evidence of his influence in Pittsburgh. The town I live in is about 3 hours away from Pittsburgh, and I don't know the city well, so all of the looking I did was on the internet. I did not find any large graven images of Vulcan. I did find that the sculptor of the Birmingham Vulcan, Giuseppe Moretti, also spent a great deal of his time in Pittsburgh, where he enjoyed numerous commissions, including two striking panthers for a bridge and several war memorials. Although not finding any statues of Vulcan in Pittsburgh (I would be very interested to hear from anyone who knows of one), I did find evidence of his association with the steel industry in people's minds. For instance, one of the earliest labor unions there was called the "Sons of Vulcan." http://www.history.ohio-state.edu/projects/PittsburghSurvey/SteelWorkers/unions.htm ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ This description of Pittsburgh at night was written by Captain Willard Glazier In 1855: "It is as though one had reached the outer edge of the infernal regions, and saw before him the great furnace of Pandemonium with all the lids lifted. The scene is so strange and weird that it will live in the memory forever. One pictures, as he beholds it, the tortured spirits writhing in agony, their sinewy limbs convulsed, and the very air oppressive with pain and rage. But the scene is illusive. This is the domain of Vulcan, not of Pluto. Here, in this gigantic workshop, in the midst of the materials of his labor, the god of fire, having left his ancient home on Olympus, and established himself in this newer world, stretches himself beside his forge, and sleeps the peaceful sleep which is the reward of honest industry. Right at his doorway are mountains of coal to keep a perpetual fire upon his altar; within the reach of his outstretched grasp are rivers of coal oil; and a little further away great stores of iron for him to forge and weld, and shape into a thousand forms; and at his feet is the shining river, an impetuous Mercury, ever ready to do his bidding. Grecian mythology never conceived of an abode so fitting for the son of Zeus as that which he has selected for himself on this western hemisphere. And his ancient tasks were child's play compared with the mighty ones he has undertaken today." http://www.clpgh.org/exhibit/pburg.html ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Also characterizing Pittsburgh as a son of Vulcan is the "Hymn of Pittsburgh" by Richard Realf (1834-1878): Hymn of Pittsburgh My father was mighty Vulcan I am Smith of the land and sea, The cunning spirit of Tubal Cain Came with my marrow to me; I think great thoughts strong-winged with steel, I coin vast iron acts. And weld the impalpable dream of Seers, Into utile lyric facts. I am monarch of all the forges, I have solved the riddle of fire, The Amen of Nature to need of Man Echoes at my desire; I search with the subtle soul of flame, The heart of the Rocky earth, And out of my anvils the prophecies Of the miracle years blaze forth. I am swarth with the soot of my chimneys, I drip with the sweats of toil, I quell and scepter the savage wastes And charm the curse from the soil; I fling the bridges across the gulfs, That hold us from the To Be; And build the roads for the bannered march Of Crowned humanity. http://www.clpgh.org/exhibit/vulcan.html ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The reference above to Tubal Cain and the claim that it is Vulcan who "charms the curse from the soil" will be discussed in Part 7. Notice for now that Pittsburgh is blatantly associated with Vulcan by this Civil War soldier/poet, and that the purpose of all of this technology is the "bannered march of Crowned humanity." As I poked around the history of the steel industry in Pittsburgh I came upon two articles discussing the role of Pittsburgh Steel in the World Wars. Here are a couple of excerpts, and links to the full articles: World War I: "This district became known as the Arsenal of the world," said Frank Murdock in Some Aspects of Pittsburgh's Industrial Contribution to the World War. "In it were located 250 great war plants, employing more than 500,000 men and women, constantly engaged day and night, in many instances seven days a week, turning out war supplies." As British Army General Maurice put it, 'Pittsburgh steel was everywhere along the battle front." Eighty percent of all munition steel used by the United States Army came from Pittsburgh's mills. The district produced 3.5 million shells for the U.S. Army and Navy, with Carnegie Steel Company setting a new world record for production during October, 1918, when it manufactured 100,000 shells, noted Murdock. A large proportion of heavy cannons and armor plate--able to withstand machine gun fire at 50 yards--were produced by Carnegie Steel. One order alone from the British government to the Westinghouse Company for bullets and cartridge cases filled 14,150 railroad freight cars, or enough to make a train 100 miles long, according to Frank Harper in Pittsburgh: Forge of the Universe. The U.S. Government in 1918 contracted Pittsburgh industries for $215 million of war-related production, noted Harper, and Westinghouse Electric Corporation valued its war contracts during World War I at $1.5 billion. As Murdock summed up: "When the Allied Nations found themselves fighting with their backs against the wall, in order to uphold the state of civilization they had spent years acquiring, it was but natural that they should turn with an appeal to the city that had contributed so materially in the building up of that civilization." http://www.nauticom.net/www/maduro/wwi.htm World War II: "Where the U.S. war effort would have stood without the contribution of industrial Pittsburgh is a frightening thought. During the war years, the district produced 95 million tons of steel and $19 billion in ammunition. The manpower shortage caused by both men answering their calls to service and the enormous demand for wartime steel production was alleviated by recruiting of women in industry and a lengthening of the work week. The war also resulted in the building of two shipbuilding plants on Neville Island. Hundreds of steel warships were constructed in Pittsburgh and joined the Atlantic war theater via the Ohio and Mississippi rivers and the Gulf of Mexico." http://www.nauticom.net/www/maduro/wwii.htm These numbers are chilling in and of themselves, but even more so in light of the fact that one of Vulcan's primary roles was to craft weapons for the other false gods. If Vulcan does indeed reign over Pittsburgh, he was clearly still employed in that capacity during the two World Wars. Just as Vulcan is honored with a painting in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, he is paid homage in the Rotunda of the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg. The mural entitled: "The Spirit of Vulcan, The Genius of the Workers in Iron and Steel" was painted by Edwin Austin Abbey in 1907. http://assets.cambridge.org/0521461472/sample/0521461472WSN01.pdf (pictured here as an illustration in the article "Visualizing Labor in American Sculpture" by Melissa Dabakis, p. 17) +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Free Indeed - Part 7 : Vulcan in Freemasonry Free Indeed - Home |