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79-568: The Cambria Iron Company of Johnstown, Pennsylvania , was a major producer of iron and steel that operated independently from 1852 to 1916. The company adopted many innovations in the steelmaking process, including those of William Kelly and Henry Bessemer . Founded in 1852, the company became the nation's largest steel foundry within two decades. It was reorganized and renamed the Cambria Steel Company in 1898, purchased by Midvale Steel and Ordnance Company in 1916, and sold to

158-653: A proprietary subsidiary shipping company called Franklin Steamship Company of Cleveland in 1906 and Beaver Steamship Company in 1916. Both companies were sold to Bethlehem Steamship Company in 1924. Infrastructure whose parts were manufactured by the Cambria Company include the following (with variations in attribution). All have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP): Johnstown, Pennsylvania Johnstown

237-423: A steel maker and fabricator. At its peak, steel provided Johnstowners with more than 13,000 full-time, well-paying jobs. However, increased domestic and foreign competition, coupled with Johnstown's relative distance from its primary iron ore source in the western Great Lakes , led to a steady decline in profitability. New capital investment waned. Johnstown's mountainous terrain, and the resulting poor layout for

316-405: A Spanish wind energy company, opened its first U.S. wind turbine blade manufacturing facility near here in 2006 which subsequently closed in 2014. Several wind turbines are sited on Babcock Ridge, the " Eastern Continental Divide ", along the eastern edge of Cambria and Somerset counties. Lockheed Martin relocated a facility from Greenville, South Carolina , to Johnstown in 2008. Höganäs AB,

395-562: A Swedish powdered metals manufacturer operates two plants in the region, one in the Moxham section of the city and also in nearby Hollsopple in Somerset County. Companies like Concurrent Technologies Corporation, DRS Laurel Technologies, ITSI Biosciences, Kongsberg Defense and more throughout the region are in business for themselves. Recent construction in the surrounding region, the downtown, and adjacent Kernville neighborhood—including

474-504: A different phase of development and growth of the steel industry. The Lower Works no longer has significant traces of the earliest facilities used in steel manufacturing. All five of these areas comprise the National Historic Landmark District designated in 1989. The Cambria Iron Company was founded in 1852 to provide iron for the construction of railroads . In 1854, the iron works, which had gone out of

553-545: A five-year project that gouged, widened, deepened, and moved 9.2 miles (14.8 km) of river channel in the city, and encased the river banks in concrete and reinforced steel. In a campaign organized by the Chamber of Commerce, thousands of Johnstown's citizens wrote to friends and relatives across the country hoping to bring new business to the town. Professional ice hockey found a home in Johnstown, starting in 1941 with

632-497: A leader in developing intercommunication systems among first responders , and is now a national model for ways to avoid the communications problems which faced many first responders during the September 11, 2001 attacks . Johnstown is located in southwestern Cambria County at 40°19′34″N 78°55′10″W  /  40.32611°N 78.91944°W  / 40.32611; -78.91944 (40.3260031, -78.9193066). According to

711-829: A location in South Carolina . In April 2010 it was announced that the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL would call Johnstown home for 10 games during the regular season and for one of their preseason games. They returned once again for the 2011–12 season. After the 2011-2012 NAHL hockey season, the Alaska Avalanche relocated to Johnstown and became the Johnstown Tomahawks and have remained in Johnstown ever since. The city has history in amateur and professional baseball. Since 1944, Johnstown has been

790-644: A member team of the ECHL , and played their home games in the Cambria County War Memorial Arena . The Chiefs' decision to relocate caused a flood of public interest in the sport of hockey. As many as four leagues were interested in having a team in the War Memorial. In the end the city landed a deal with another ECHL team, the Wheeling Nailers , who played parts of two seasons at the War Memorial. A full-time tenant arrived in 2012, when

869-778: A minor-league baseball team, the Johnstown Johnnies , beginning in 1884. The last team to play as the Johnnies, as a part of the Frontier League , left the city in 2002. Johnstown also hosts the annual Sunnehanna Amateur golf tournament at its Sunnehanna Country Club. The invitational tournament hosts top amateur golfers from around the United States. Johnstown is home to the Flood City Water Polo team. Established in 2005 by Zachary Puhala,

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948-440: A new 100,000-square-foot (9,300 m ) Regional Technology Complex that will house a division of Northrop Grumman , among other tenants—signal the increasing dependence of Johnstown's economy on the U.S. government's defense budget. The high-tech defense industry is now the main non-health-care staple of the Johnstown economy, with the region pulling in well over $ 100M annually in federal government contracts, punctuated by one of

1027-534: A period of prosperity. By the Centennial Exposition in 1876, they "were making Midvale into a company as congenial to a scientific approach to industrial problems as could be found anywhere in America". It was in the 1880s that Frederick Winslow Taylor rose through the ranks at Midvale, from lathe operator , to gang boss, to engineer, to chief engineer of the works. During this time he developed

1106-463: A region with a ready supply of iron, coal and limestone . Floods were almost a yearly event in the valley during the 1880s. On the afternoon of May 30, 1889, following a quiet Memorial Day ceremony and a parade, it began raining in the valley. The next day water filled the streets, and rumors began that a dam holding an artificial lake in the mountains to the northeast might give way. It did, and an estimated 20 million tons of water began spilling into

1185-451: A steelworks), but between them. In 1872, Sellers brought in a Yale-trained chemist with a talent for organization named Charles Augustus Brinley, who used applied science to straighten out the steelmaking formulas and processes, along the way analyzing and salvaging the scrap that had accumulated during Butcher's tenure. Brinley hired Russell Davenport, a fellow Yale chemist, to be his assistant. Brinley, Davenport, and Sellers led Midvale to

1264-400: A year, raised $ 3 million for industrial development in the area. Bethlehem Steel, which was the major contributor to the fund, committed itself to bringing new steelmaking technologies to Johnstown because they were impressed by the city's own efforts to diversify. Extensive damage from the 1977 flood was heavy and there was talk of the company pulling out. Again, the city won a reprieve from

1343-491: Is held at the Point Stadium in downtown Johnstown. The Flood City Music Festival is held at Peoples Natural Gas Park. The Sunnehanna Amateur golf tournament is held once a year at Sunnehanna Country Club. Professional golfers have played in this tournament as amateurs such as Tiger Woods and Arnold Palmer . Johnstown has been home to a long succession of minor league hockey franchises dating back to 1940. One of

1422-624: Is located at 401 Main Street. The mayor of Johnstown is Frank Janakovic, and the Deputy Mayor is Marie Mock. Colleges: Secondary education: Technology schools: Libraries: Johnstown's television market is part of the Johnstown/ Altoona / State College market. NBC affiliate WJAC-TV 6 (which also operates the market's CW affiliate through The CW Plus on its DT4 subchannel) and Fox affiliate WWCP-TV 8 are licensed in

1501-558: Is reported at 9%. Most of the jobs center around health care, defense, telemarketing and retail. A reduction in steel production also reduced coal mining in Pennsylvania, which was important to the Johnstown economy. In 1982, Johnstown's longest-serving mayor, Herbert Pfuhl Jr. , said that, as a result of the decline, city revenues had fallen approximately 35 percent. The Johnstown economy later recovered somewhat, largely due to industry around health care and high-tech defense, but

1580-688: Is the largest city in Cambria County , Pennsylvania , United States. The population was 18,411 as of the 2020 census . Located 57 miles (92 km) east of Pittsburgh , it is the principal city of the Johnstown metropolitan area , which is located in Cambria County and had 133,472 residents in 2020. It is also part of the Johnstown–Somerset combined statistical area, which includes both Cambria and Somerset Counties. Johnstown

1659-665: The Bethlehem Steel Company in 1923. The company's facilities, which extend some 12 miles (19 km) along the Conemaugh and Little Conemaugh rivers, operated until 1992. Today, they are designated as a National Historic Landmark District . Several works by the firm are listed on the National Register of Historic Places . The industrial facilities of the Cambria occupied five separate sites in and around Johnstown, Pennsylvania . Its earliest facilities, known as

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1738-1065: The East Coast that has had massive growth in the health care industry. Major health care centers include Memorial Medical Center and Windber Medical Center, the Laurel Highlands Neuro-Rehabilitation Center, and the John P. Murtha Neuroscience and Pain Institute, with its advances in treating wounded veterans, and the Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center's focus on early diagnosis and advanced treatment. The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown and Pennsylvania Highlands Community College attract thousands of students to their contiguous campuses in Richland , 5 miles (8 km) east of Johnstown. Cambria-Rowe Business College, located in

1817-716: The Johnstown Blue Birds for one season and returning in 1950 with the Johnstown Jets . The Jets later hosted an exhibition game against Maurice Richard and the Montreal Canadiens on November 20, 1951. Newcomers to the town heard little about the tragic past. Johnstown proclaimed itself "flood-free", a feeling reinforced when Johnstown was virtually the only riverside city in Pennsylvania not to flood during Hurricane Agnes in 1972. The immediate post- World War II years marked Johnstown's peak as

1896-420: The Johnstown Tomahawks of the junior North American Hockey League began play. The recently established ART WORKS in Johnstown! houses artist studios in some of the area's architecturally significant but underused industrial buildings. The ART WORKS in Johnstown project is projected to be a non-profit LEED-certified green building. The Frank & Sylvia Pasquerilla Heritage Discovery Center opened in 2001 with

1975-590: The Moxham section of Johnstown, which offered concentrated career training and had continuously served Johnstown since 1891 closed in 2016 after loss of accreditation. The Pasquerilla Performing Arts Center, a concert/theatrical venue at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, attracts high-quality performers. The Johnstown Symphony Orchestra and the recently formed Johnstown Symphony Chamber Players provide classical music. The Johnstown Concert Ballet, centered in

2054-621: The National Register of Historic Places are the Grand Army of the Republic Hall , Cambria Iron Company , Cambria Public Library Building , Bridge in Johnstown City , Nathan's Department Store , and Johnstown Inclined Railway . A settlement was established here in 1791 by Joseph Johns, in whose honor it was named, and the place was soon laid out as a town. Johnstown was formally platted as Conemaugh Old Town in 1800 by

2133-535: The Northeast to the city of Johnstown since 1998. Well over 200,000 participants enjoyed the 2008 edition of Thunder in the Valley, and the event continues to grow in size. Significant efforts have been made to deal with deteriorating housing, brownfields , drug problems, and other issues as population leaves the city limits and concentrates in suburban boroughs and townships. The Johnstown Fire Department has become

2212-541: The Swiss German immigrant Joseph Johns (born Josef Schantz). The settlement was initially known as "Schantzstadt", but was soon anglicized to Johnstown. The community incorporated as Conemaugh borough January 12, 1831, but renamed Johnstown on April 14, 1834. From 1834 to 1854, the city was a port and key transfer point along the Pennsylvania Main Line Canal . Johnstown was at the head of

2291-648: The United States Census Bureau , the city has a total area of 6.111 square miles (15.83 km ), of which 5.913 square miles (15.31 km ) is land and 0.198 square miles (0.51 km ) is water. The Conemaugh River forms at Johnstown at the confluence of its tributaries, the Stonycreek River and the Little Conemaugh . Johnstown is divided into many neighborhoods, each with its own unique, ethnic feel. These include

2370-643: The 1950s gave birth to the Gee Bee chain of department stores. However, the St Patrick's Day flood of 1936 combined with the gnawing effects of the Great Depression left Johnstown struggling again. Seeking a permanent solution to the flooding problem, Johnstown's citizens wrote to President Franklin Roosevelt pleading for federal aid. In August 1938, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers launched

2449-403: The 2010 census, there were 9,917 households, of which 22.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.5% were headed by married couples living together, 17.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.7% were non-families. Of all households, 43.0% were made up of individuals, and 17.9% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size

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2528-491: The Downtown Business District, Kernville, Hornerstown, Roxbury, Old Conemaugh Borough, Prospect, Woodvale, Minersville, Cambria City, Morrellville (West End), Oakhurst, Coopersdale, Walnut Grove, Moxham and the 8th Ward. Before 1900, the town of Windber, Pennsylvania , was a suburb of Johnstown, until its incorporation. The borough of Dale is an enclave located within the city of Johnstown, situated on

2607-545: The Historic Cambria City District, provides classical ballet performances and training to the area. The Pasquerilla Convention Center was recently constructed downtown, adjacent to the historic Cambria County War Memorial Arena at 326 Napoleon Street. Point Stadium , a baseball park where Babe Ruth once played, was razed and rebuilt. A zoning ordinance created an artist zone and a traditional neighborhood zone to encourage both artistic endeavors and

2686-811: The Lower Works, are located on the east bank of the Conemaugh River, north of downtown Johnstown and the Little Conemaugh River. The Gautier Plant is northeast of downtown Johnstown on the south side of the Little Conemaugh. Further up that river is the extensive Franklin Plant and Wheel Plant, while the Rod and Wire Plant is located on the west side of the Conemaugh River, north of the Lower Works. Each of these facilities represents

2765-589: The Pittsburgh area, but would continue to be available in Johnstown until September 2019 as the market's default CW affiliate. Midvale Steel Midvale Steel was a succession of steel -making corporations whose flagship plant was the Midvale Steel Works in Nicetown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . The mill operated from 1867 until 1976. In the 1880s, Frederick Winslow Taylor rose through

2844-707: The William Butcher Steel Works. The products that founders William Butcher, Jr. (a son of the founder of W. & S. Butcher Steel Works, a scion of the Sheffield, England steel industry) and Philip Syng Justice (an American manufacturer) planned to produce were cast-steel locomotive tires (that is, in British spelling, tyres ) and cast-steel forgings, with a plan to make eventually a promising new product: steel rails, which would be far superior to older iron ones. At about this time in nearby Bethlehem,

2923-615: The World War II era, appears to have been the son of Charles A. Brinley, Midvale's metallurgical leader. Besides the railroad industry, one of the most important client industries for Midvale became armaments. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, among many American steel companies, Bethlehem Steel and Midvale Steel especially, became the Krupps of the Americas. (In fact, they built their armament businesses largely on offering

3002-466: The blast, were purchased by a group of Philadelphia merchants led by Matthew Newkirk . After a fire destroyed the main rolling mill in 1857, Newkirk persuaded his co-investors to rebuild it on a larger scale. The company grew rapidly and by the 1870s, was a leading producer of steel and an innovator in the advancement of steelmaking technology. It performed early experiments with the Kelly converter, built

3081-652: The canal's western branch, with canal boats having been transported over the mountains via the Allegheny Portage Railroad and refloated here, to continue the trip by water to Pittsburgh and the Ohio Valley . Perhaps the most famous passenger who traveled via the canal to visit Johnstown briefly was Charles Dickens in 1842. By 1854, canal transport became redundant with the completion of the Pennsylvania Railroad , which now spanned

3160-561: The cash prize, the arena won the opportunity to host the September 29, 2015, NHL pre-season game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning . Per WJAC; in the year 2022, Johnstown has had 12 homicides as of August. Statistics have not been updated since 2018 — The chances of becoming a victim of a violent crime in Johnstown are 1 in 184 where the average for Pennsylvania is 1 in 316.” The Johnstown City Hall

3239-553: The city flood free, and despite subsequent work to do so, another major flood occurred in 1977. Before becoming an independent town, Windber, Pennsylvania was considered a part of the city. The city is home to five national historic districts : the Downtown Johnstown Historic District , Cambria City Historic District , Minersville Historic District , Moxham Historic District , and Old Conemaugh Borough Historic District . Individual listings on

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3318-433: The city was $ 23,785, and the median income for a family was $ 32,221. Male full-time workers had a median income of $ 31,026 versus $ 28,858 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 15,511. 34.2% of the population and 26.9% of families were below the poverty line . Of the total population, 55.0% of those under the age of 18 and 18.4% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. The unemployment average

3397-458: The city was 80.0% White , 14.6% African American , 0.2% Native American , 0.2% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 0.7% some other race , and 4.3% from two or more races . Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 3.1% of the population. In the three-year period ending in 2010, it was estimated that 22.3% of the population were of German , 15.8% Irish , 12.9% Italian , 7.7% Slovak , 6.7% English , 5.6% Polish , and 6.1% American ancestry. At

3476-818: The city. Johnstown is also served by CBS affiliate WTAJ-TV 10 and ABC affiliate WATM-TV 23, both based in Altoona, and State College-based PBS member station WPSU-TV 3, licensed to Clearfield but based on the Pennsylvania State University campus. Several other low-power stations, including WHVL-LD 29 ( MyNetworkTV ) in State College, also transmit to Johnstown. WPKD-TV 19, the CW's affiliate in Pittsburgh licensed to Jeannette , began operations in Johnstown and later moved to serve

3555-463: The city. The Ku Klux Klan burned 12 crosses outside Johnstown in an attempt to intimidate Rosedale's Black population. Pennsylvania Governor Gifford Pinchot intervened to prevent Cauffiel from enforcing the edict. In the early 20th century, the population reached 67,000 people. The city's first commercial radio station, WJAC , began broadcasts in 1925. The downtown boasted at least five major department stores, including Glosser Brothers, which in

3634-485: The club's only Johnstown native; most of the men were from Pittsburgh. Elder was a former news editor who had become chief legal counsel for Cambria Iron Company. His wife and daughter died in the flood. He continued to be a notable civic leader. He also wrote books and poetry. In 1916, Cambria Iron was acquired by Midvale Steel and Ordnance Company . Midvale sold the company to Bethlehem Steel in 1923., It operated continuously until 1992. Cambria Steel Company had formed

3713-449: The company's top management, which had always regarded the Johnstown works with special affection because of its history and reputation. As the increasing amount of federal environmental regulations became more difficult to comply with and the issues with the aging manufacturing facilities grew more significant, and as steel companies began closing down plants all over the country, by 1982 it looked as if Johnstown had exhausted its appeals. By

3792-475: The core of his philosophy of scientific management , which later became enormously influential (and often controversial) throughout the field of industrial engineering . Other notable people who worked for Midvale Steel or in close cooperation with it include Henry Gantt , James Buchanan Eads , Theodore Cooper , and Francis B. Foley . Charles E. Brinley, president of Baldwin Locomotive Works during

3871-542: The dam failed, unleashing the Johnstown Flood . The flood killed more than 2,200 people—then the largest disaster in U.S. history—and badly damaged the Cambria Iron Company's facilities along the rivers. The company reopened one week later, but at reduced capacity, and it was eclipsed by other producers as it rebuilt. After Morrell's death, his club membership was purchased by Cyrus Elder, who became

3950-411: The dam, Morrell joined South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club , which owned the dam. Morrell campaigned to club officials to improve the dam, which he had inspected by his own engineers and by those of the Pennsylvania Railroad . Morrell offered to effect repairs, partially at his own expense, but was rejected by club president Benjamin F. Ruff. Morell died in 1885, his warnings unheeded. On May 31, 1889,

4029-707: The disaster. An infamous site of a major fire during the flood was the old stone Pennsylvania Railroad bridge located where the Stonycreek and Little Conemaugh rivers join to form the Conemaugh River . The bridge still stands today. The Johnstown flood of 1889 established the American Red Cross as the pre-eminent emergency relief organization in the United States. Founder Clara Barton , then 67, came to Johnstown with 50 doctors and nurses and set up tent hospitals as well as temporary "hotels" for

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4108-450: The early 1990s, Johnstown abandoned most of its steel production, although some limited fabrication work continues. In 2003, U.S. Census data showed that Johnstown was the least likely city in the United States to attract newcomers; however, what were previously relatively weak opportunities provided by the local manufacturing and service economies have more recently begun to burgeon, attracting outsiders. Gamesa Corporación Tecnológica ,

4187-532: The expansion of the works into one of the largest producers of rails in the United States. He helped to end US dependence on British railroad construction imports. A Republican, Morrell also served as a member of the 40th United States Congress and 41st United States Congresses from Pennsylvania, from 1867-1871. Morrell became concerned about the South Fork Dam , which formed Lake Conemaugh above Johnstown and Cambria Iron Company's facilities. To monitor

4266-536: The expulsion of all African-Americans and Mexicans in Johnstown who had lived in Johnstown for less than seven years. The edict was in response to a deadly shootout between Robert Young, a black man, and Johnstown police officers. African-Americans had settled in the Rosedale neighborhood during the Great Migration . Although Cauffiel's edict of expulsion was without legal force, some 500 African-Americans fled

4345-446: The first blooming mill , and was one of the first plants to use hydraulics for the movement of ingots. It built one of the first plants to use the Bessemer process for making steel at a large scale. The company's innovations, methods, and processes were widely influential throughout the steel industry. The company was at its height in the 1870s, under the long-term leadership of general manager Daniel Johnson Morrell , who had overseen

4424-417: The historic Cambria City section of town, which boasts a variety of eastern European ethnic churches and social halls. This neighborhood hosted the National Folk Festival for three years in the early 1990s, which expanded into the Flood City Music Festival . Johnstown also hosts the annual Thunder in the Valley motorcycle rally during the fourth week of June; the event has attracted motorcyclists from across

4503-472: The homeless, and stayed on for five months to coordinate relief efforts. The mills were back in operation within a month. The Cambria Works grew, and Johnstown became more prosperous than ever. The disaster had not destroyed the community but strengthened it. Later generations would draw on lessons learned in 1889. After the successful merger of six surrounding boroughs, Johnstown became a city on April 7, 1890. In 1923, Johnstown Mayor Joseph Cauffiel ordered

4582-425: The host city for the AAABA Baseball Tournament held each summer. Several Major League Baseball players have played on AAABA teams over the years, including Hall-of Famers Al Kaline and Reggie Jackson and former Major League managers Joe Torre and Bruce Bochy . The organization also has its own Hall of Fame instituted in its 50th anniversary year of 1994. In addition, the city has hosted several incarnations of

4661-400: The mills' physical plant strung along 11 miles (18 km) of river bottom lands, compounded the problem. New regulations ordered by the EPA in the 1970s also hit Johnstown, with the aging Cambria plant (now Bethlehem Steel ) especially hard. However, with encouragement from the steel company, city leaders organized an association called Johnstown Area Regional Industries (JARI) and, within

4740-439: The more recent manifestations, the Johnstown Chiefs , were named for their Slap Shot counterparts. The team made their debut in January 1988 with the All-American Hockey League , joining the league midway through the season. After one season in the AAHL, the Chiefs became one of five teams to join the newly founded East Coast Hockey League (now ECHL). The team announced in February 2010 that they would be leaving Johnstown for

4819-402: The name reflected the fact that Midvale was roughly equidistant from the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers; however, if accurate, this etymology was fanciful, because a look at a map of Philadelphia shows that the plant, at Wissahickon and Roberts Avenues, was actually much closer to the Schuylkill. Perhaps the emphasis was that it was not directly on either river (as might usually be expected of

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4898-403: The old-fashioned "Mom and Pop" enterprises that had difficulty thriving under the previous code. The Bottleworks Ethnic Arts Center offers many exhibitions, events, performances, and classes that celebrate the rich and diverse cultural heritage of the area. The Johnstown Chiefs ice hockey team played for 22 seasons, the longest period a franchise of the league stayed in one city. The Chiefs were

4977-412: The permanent exhibit "America: Through Immigrant Eyes", which tells the story of immigration to the area during the Industrial Revolution . In June 2009, the Heritage Discovery Center opened the Johnstown Children's Museum and premiered "The Mystery of Steel", a film detailing the history of steel in Johnstown. The Bottleworks Ethnic Arts Center, ART WORKS, and the Heritage Discovery Center are located in

5056-427: The population. 22.8% of residents were under the age of 18, 4.9% were under 5 years of age, and 19.5% were 65 and older. As of the 2010 census , there were 20,978 people, 9,917 households, and 5,086 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,559.8 inhabitants per square mile (1,374.4/km ). There were 11,978 housing units at an average density of 2,030.2 per square mile (783.9/km ). The racial makeup of

5135-414: The predecessor company of Bethlehem Steel was also getting into the steel rail business. The Nicetown site was chosen because plenty of the anthracite coal that moved by river, canal, and rail from northeast Pennsylvania passed by Nicetown on its way to Port Richmond . Anthracite was superior to bituminous coal for steelmaking. Nicetown's proximity to one of the principal locomotive-building plants of

5214-416: The premier defense trade shows in the U.S., the annual Showcase for Commerce. Johnstown remains a regional medical, educational, cultural, and communications center. As in many other locales, health care provides a significant percentage of the employment opportunities in the city. The region is located right in the middle of the "Health Belt", an area stretching from the Midwest to New England and down

5293-400: The quiet but immensely influential American engineer and businessman William Sellers , forced out Butcher, whose adherence to the idea of steelmaking as an obscure art of secret recipes did not serve him well when his recipes did not turn out right and he was unable to analyze why. With Butcher gone, Sellers renamed his erstwhile-namesake steel works the Midvale Steel Works. Kanigel states that

5372-565: The ranks at Midvale, from lathe operator, to gang boss, to engineer, to chief engineer of the works. During this time he developed the core of his philosophy of scientific management . Midvale produced high-quality steels (including many alloy steels ) and the casting , forging , and machining needed to use them in special applications such as heavy artillery ( naval , coastal , and field ); steam turbines ; naval armor plate ; and pressure vessels for use in chemical plants (for example, petroleum refineries ). Midvale also helped pioneer

5451-538: The southeast side of the city between Hornerstown and Walnut Grove. As of the 2020 census , there were 18,411 people, 8,574 households, and 4,399 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,104.7 inhabitants per square mile (1,198.7/km ). There were 11,133 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 68.1% White , 20.9% African American , 0.2% Native American , 0.4% Asian , 0.0% Pacific Islander , 1.2% from some other races and 9.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.2% of

5530-400: The state. With the coming of the railroads, the city's growth improved. Johnstown became a stop on the main line of the Pennsylvania Railroad and was connected with the Baltimore & Ohio . The railroads provided large-scale development of the region's mineral wealth. Iron , coal , and steel quickly became central to the town of Johnstown. By 1860, the Cambria Iron Company of Johnstown

5609-436: The steel formulas used in the early automotive industry . Midvale was never a particularly large company (relative to giants such as Carnegie , Bethlehem , and U.S. Steel ), and the flagship Nicetown plant was, in the management's own words, "never a 'tonnage' plant". That is, unlike larger steelmakers, they did not measure their success in terms of the sheer tonnage they could manage to produce per year. Midvale's niche in

5688-456: The steel industry was defined early on by a scientific approach to metallurgy during the transitional era when steelmaking gradually transformed from black art to applied science . Even after the rest of the industry caught up in terms of that transition, Midvale continued for decades to maintain a niche for itself in the area of the market defined by high quality, research and development , and special applications. The company began in 1867 as

5767-649: The team takes its name from the history of floods in the area. FCWP is part of the American Water Polo Organization. On May 2, 2015, Johnstown was announced as the winner of the 2015 Kraft Hockeyville USA contest and was awarded $ 150,000 toward improvements of the Cambria County War Memorial Arena . The contest was sponsored through a partnership between Kraft Foods , the National Hockey League (NHL) , and National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA). In addition to

5846-552: The western hemisphere, the Baldwin Locomotive Works (which at the time was just a few rail-served miles away in the Spring Garden neighborhood ), was another benefit of the site. Midvale began with the crucible process , but two years after its founding began using the open-hearth process , which would in time replace the crucibles. The company's early years were rocky. Eventually, a principal investor,

5925-440: The winding gorge that led to Johnstown some 14 miles (23 km) away. The destruction in Johnstown occurred in only about 10 minutes. What had been a thriving steel town with homes, churches, saloons, a library, a railroad station, electric street lights, a roller rink , and two opera houses was buried under mud and debris. Out of a population of approximately 30,000 at the time, at least 2,209 people are known to have perished in

6004-404: Was 2.08 and the average family size was 2.87. The age distribution was 21.7% under 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 27.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 41.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males. For the period 2011–2013, the estimated median annual income for a household in

6083-429: Was reported to be the third-fastest shrinking city in the U.S. in 2017. Nonetheless, in 2018, Johnstown was ranked 169th among "The Best Small Places For Business And Careers" in the U.S., by Forbes . Major employers in the area include: Johnstown hosts a number of events each year. "Thunder in the Valley" is a motorcycle rally with weekend crowds ranging from 150,000 to 200,000. The AAABA amateur baseball tournament

6162-514: Was settled in 1770. The city has experienced three major floods in its history. The Johnstown Flood of May 31, 1889, occurred after the South Fork Dam collapsed 14.1 miles (22.7 km) upstream from the city during heavy rains . At least 2,209 people died as a result of the flood and subsequent fire that raged through the debris. Another major flood occurred in 1936. Despite a pledge by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to make

6241-569: Was the leading steel producer in the United States, outproducing steel giants in Pittsburgh and Cleveland . Through the second half of the 19th century, Johnstown made much of the nation's barbed wire . Johnstown prospered from skyrocketing demand in the western United States for barbed wire. Twenty years after its founding, the Cambria Works was a huge enterprise sprawling over 60 acres (24 ha) in Johnstown and employing 7,000. It owned 40,000 acres (160 km ) of valuable mineral lands in

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