Sloss History at UAB

Posted on Feb 01, 2012 in News

Tim Melton/Features Editor

To tie in with UAB Community Week and the Mervyn H. Sterne Library Collection displays, Karen Utz, a UAB history professor and curator for Sloss Furnaces, spoke to students about the development of Birmingham as a major iron and steel provider from the late 1850’s to present day.

Utz claimed that Sloss Furnaces is the only 20th century blast furnace in the United States that is completely intact.
She explained the history of the furnace’s ownership and its importance and significance in the advancement toward an industrial South.

The lecture covered Sloss history and featured photos from the Great Depression, WWII, segregation, and the decline in the American iron and steel industry.

Also discussed was the eventual closing of the furnaces in the 1970’s, its deterioration, its restoration and the reopening in 1983 as a national historic landmark and museum.

“We were looking at different events that tied into our collection and we knew Karen’s presentation would accommodate that,” said Sterne librarian Brooke Becker.

The current collection for Sterne Library is titled “Industrial Workers in Birmingham” and was compiled by Laura Simpson and Irina Stanishevskaya.

“One of the topics I found interesting was the inclusion of the Alabama Convict Leasing Systems for Sloss’ mining workforce in the late 1880’s,” said student Mark Davis.

“[Mrs. Utz’s] point that our state was one of the last to outlaw the systems and that it made millions of dollars from them is an integral part of Alabama state history,” said Davis.

“Also, I thought the culture of baseball leagues within the industry might be something I would be interested to learn more about,” he added.

The lecture was brought in part by the Alabama Humanities Foundation. For more information on programs and lectures around the state, visit ww.ahf.net.

The next collection for Sterne Library will relate to Black History Month in February.

Eric White
Staff Writer
ejwhite@uab.edu

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