The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1920-11-24
IND. HARBOR
MAN TO HEAD
OPERATIONS
Successor As Gen. Supt.
Is Vim. Maxwell OF
MidVaIe Steel Co.

John ". Lees. for number Of years.
general superintendent Of the Indiana
Harbor works of the Inland steel Com
pany, and one of the best known operat-
ing officials IN the American Steel in
dustry, has been made Vice -President
Of the company with headquarters a.
the general offices in Chicago.
Announcement of Mr.. Lees election
to be Vice-President in charge OF op-
erations follows the meeting of the
Board of Directors of the Inland Steel
Company held on Tuesday afternoon
EASTERN MAN SUCCESSOR
Nice-President Lees has appointed as
his successor at Indiana Harbor, wa
Ian A. Maxwell. Jr.. an Official OF the
Midvale Steel Company. Mr.. Maxwell
viii assume his duties as general sur
erintendent of the Indiana Harbor
works on December l.
The news of Mr.. Lees promotion TO
be chief executive operating officer OF
one of the largest steel companies in the
United States. while causing regret
that he is to leave the local works. is
well received not only IN Indiana Har-
Dor but throughout the Calumet region.
where he has hundreds OF friends.
A ROMANCE Nv STEEL
The story OF the rise OF the Inland
Steel Company at Indiana Harbor from
what the skeptical we're once won't TO
Genominate as the scrap mill to be one
Of the finest and largest steel plants
in the world, and the greatest independ-
ent steel plant in the west IS also the
story Of the success Of John W Lees.
and Of the Block brothers. under whose
supervision Mr.. Lees built the local
plants.
When Mr.. Lees came to Indiana Har-
Dor to be superintendent Of the Inland
steel Company works. II was little more
than an array of stoves and kettles.
with dingy roofs. located on sand heap
near Lake Michigan.
Either a good wlndstorm will bow
the plant away or else somebody WILL
pile on a couple OF box cars and ship st
out of town" scoffers said.
But the Block brothers we're deterni-
ined TO win and they did, weathering
the ups and downs of poor times and
good times and strong competition And
during the whole time their right hand
production and construction man was
Mr. Lees. whose reputation as the build
or of the Indiana Harbor blast furnaces,
coke ovens and steel works also places
him as one of the foremost Industrial
constructors in the country.
FROM zoo MEN TO 1000
Mr.. Lees took hold of the plant wner
it employed but a few hundred men.
Today the efficiency of the organiza-
tion OF Indiana Harbor works and its
1000 men is second to none In the en-
tire country.
FoNDEST DREAMS oUTDoNE
Not even the Thompsons, the Blocks.
nor Mr. Lees in their most fanciful
dreams of the future of the struggling
company ever pictured that 1t would
grow into one OF the largest producers
in the country nor that the Indiana Har-
Dor works would become the great in
dustrial institution that 1t is
Today the Inland Steel Company.
with its subsidiaries. is an Industrial
principality in itself. Besides its To-
cal and Chicago Heights plants. 1t has
huge ore properties in Minnesota, coal
mines IN Illinois and Pennsylvania.
Stone quarries in Michigan and like the
steel corporation, the Ipland's own fleet
of ore steamers ply the Great Lakes
Like the corporation II also has its
own harbor facilities at Indiana Harbor.
and in Pennsylvania IT built a town
to house its mining employees. while
at Indiana Harbor 1t is developing the
finest industrial housing project in the
middle west.
The largest property of the company
is the Indiana Harbor works, with its
ore docks, blast furnaces, coke ovens.
open hearth furnaces, plate. sheet and
rolling mills. This plants const-uc-
ton and its operating organization is
regarded as a. monument to the genius
Of Mr.. Lees
While busy man from the day he
Continued on page fve.)