Johnson Steel Company (JSC) was established by three Johannsen brothers in 1928 in Pittsfield, Rhode Island. The brothers began JSC by concentrating on high-quality, high-carbon, high-margin steel wire. Products included "music wire" for instruments such as pianos and violins; copper, tin, and other coated wires; and high tensile wire for the newly emerging aircrafts industry. JSC even pioneered new types of wire.
Throughout the 1930s and 40s, JSC prospered while maintaining its reputation for high-quality products and in-house design/construction of its own equipment. In 1946, the last remaining Johanssen brother sold the company to West Virginia Steel (WVS) for $ 4 million. For its investment, WVS obtained three Johannsen steel mills located in Pittsfield, Rhode Island (500 employees), Akron, Ohio (100 employees), and Los Angeles (16 employees), and two steel wire warehouses ? one in Chicago (8 employees) and one in Los Angeles (4 employees). WVS kept Johannsen completely intact as a wholly owned subsidiary.
The 1940s and 50s witnessed increasing JSC sales to the U.S military and U.S auto-makers and tire makers. JSC also sold wire for use in staples, nails, cables, cookie cutters, steel brushes/wire wheels, and electrical products, leading to a continued healthy upward climb in sales and profits.
In 1960 was a climatic year for the U.S steel industry. A prolonged steel strike of 14 weeks caught steel customers off guard. With stocks nearly exhausted, steel customers throughout the United States looked for alternative sources. Up to this point, competition from Japanese steel plants had been minimal. However, with few options, steel customers turned to the Japanese. They found the quality, price, and even delivery of steel to be very acceptable. No ...