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Granite City Steel

Granite City is making steel again, but many are still struggling this holiday season

By • Dec 10, 2018
David Burks mans the Salvation Army's red kettle outside the Walmart store in Granite City.
Mary Delach Leonard | St. Louis Public Radio

Salvation Army bell-ringer David Burks was making a joyful noise in front of the Granite City Walmart on a recent Friday morning. He greeted everyone who passed his red kettle, whether they dropped in pennies or a folded dollar bill or hurried by without a glance.

“You have a good day now. Thank you, and God bless you.”

The fundraising goal for the Granite City Salvation Army is $88,000 this Christmas season, and it will take thousands of drops in the buckets to get there. The Salvation Army says its trademark red kettle campaign is as important as ever because many have been left behind by the nation's rebounding economy.

Trump touts tariffs at Granite City steel mill

By & • Jul 26, 2018
President Donald Trump speaks at a Granite City Works warehouse on July 26, 2018.
File photo I Carolina Hidalgo | St. Louis Public Radio

Updated July 27 at 2:37 p.m. - STLPR journalist Jason Rosenbaum joined St. Louis on the Air host Don Marsh to provide further analysis and a behind-the-scenes look at the president's visit.

Original story from July 26:

President Donald Trump offered up a passionate defense of his trade policy during a visit Thursday to Granite City, and predicted that Friday’s economic numbers will back him up.

“The days of plundering American jobs and wealth, those days are over,’’ Trump said, touching off cheers from an enthusiastic crowd of about 500 invited guests gathered in a warehouse that’s part of a steel mill complex being reopened by US Steel.

Granite City workers in the spotlight as they prepare to make steel again

By • Jun 5, 2018
Granite City native Jason Fernandez, who serves as vice president of Local 1899, was laid off 10 years ago during the Great Recession.
Carolina Hidalgo | St. Louis Public Radio

After a two-year wait for jobs to come back, steelworkers threw an old-fashioned street party on Saturday, just blocks from U.S. Steel’s Granite City plant.

It was a “fire up” party to celebrate 500 people finally going back to work to start up a blast furnace that was idled in December 2015, said Dan Simmons, president of United Steelworkers Local 1899.

Granite City steelworkers celebrate making steel again

By • May 31, 2018
Granite City steel plant on July 20, 2017.
Carolina Hidalgo | St. Louis Public Radio

Steelworkers are about to start making steel again at U.S. Steel’s Granite City Works — and they’re throwing a street party on Saturday to celebrate.

In March, U.S. Steel announced that it was restarting one of its two blast furnaces at the plant and would recall about 500 steelworkers. They were laid off in December 2015 when the company idled its steelmaking facilities in Granite City.

Steelworkers back on job but keep a wary eye

By • Sep 6, 2010

This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Sept. 6, 2010 - Dan Simmons, president of Local 1899 of the United Steelworkers, said he never forgets his own mantra -- to buy American-made products -- even when it turns out to be a real challenge.

Simmons said that he and a fellow union official spent hours scouring the warehouse of a St. Louis candy wholesaler recently searching for union-made -- or even American-made -- candy to toss to kids at Monday's annual Labor Day parade in Granite City.

Granite City schools try to prepare students for a life beyond the steel mills

By • May 19, 2009

This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, May 19, 2009 - "G-He, G-Hi, G-Ho, Ho, Ho. Granite City Warriors Go, Go, Go!"

If these words stir memories of cool fall evenings under the bright lights of a high school stadium where you cheered wildly for the mighty Warriors, then you must be from Granite City.

Can a movie theater save downtown Granite City?

By • May 7, 2009

This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, May 7, 2009 - What a prize they would be today, that bat and baseball autographed by the St. Louis Cardinals and presented to Ed Hagnauer, now the mayor of Granite City, and his brother during an outing to Busch Stadium in 1964.

The big names were all there: Lou Brock, Bob Gibson, Tim McCarver, Mike Shannon ... the entire team that would go on to win the World Series that season. Yes, that ball and bat were special mementos, courtesy of then-Cardinals infielder Dal Maxvill, who grew up in Granite City.

How are things in Granite City? Metro East town may be canary in the steel mill

By • Apr 30, 2009

This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, April 30, 2009 - How are things in Granite City?

It's a question that Mayor Ed Hagnauer gets asked frequently these days -- largely because of the 2,000 steelworkers laid off in recent months from U.S. Steel's Granite City works. Their plant may be idle, but not so the members of the local United Steelworkers union who have captured national attention with "Put America Back to Work" rallies in support of President Barack Obama's stimulus package and fair trade.