Henry M. Botnen of Star Iron & Steel Company examines a large hoist drum being manufactured for the royal government of Afghanistan in October of 1972. The drum has been placed in a lath and is undergoing truing. Star Iron & Steel, located at 326 Alexander Avenue on Tacoma's tideflats, was a decades-old company whose work involved steel fabrication and heavy crane manufacture. Photograph ordered by Star Iron & Steel Co. (Additional identification provided by a reader)

Star Iron & Steel Co. (Tacoma); Steel industry--Tacoma--1970-1980; Botnen, Henry;

Atlas Foundry. A Bicentennial flag flaps in the wind in the Atlas Foundry's visitor parking area in the spring of 1976. Parked beside a plant building is a bright orange truck filled with a variety of steel castings manufactured by Atlas. In 2002 Atlas Foundry became Atlas Castings & Technology, further expanding the size and materials offered and increasing their presence in many primary markets. Color photograph ordered by Atlas Foundry & Machine Co.

Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. (Tacoma); Foundries--Tacoma--1970-1980; Steel industry--Tacoma--1970-1980; Trucks--Tacoma--1970-1980; Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1970-1980; Flags--United States;

1976 Daily operations at foundry. An unidentified female technician at Atlas Foundry & Machine Co., 3012 Wilkeson St., conducts quality control tests using a Tinius Olsen machine in the company's tech center. The Tinius Olsen machine would be measuring the foundry products' strength and performance. Atlas Foundry has been a presence in Tacoma since 1899 when it began manufacturing iron castings for the local logging industry. It then branched out to steel castings and further steel production. The foundry's name was changed in 2002 to Atlas Castings & Technology. Photograph ordered by Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. (www.atlascastings.com)

Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. (Tacoma); Foundries--Tacoma--1970-1980; Steel industry--Tacoma--1970-1980; Product inspections--Tacoma--1970-1980; Testing--Tacoma--1970-1980;

Daily operations at Atlas Foundry. An unidentified employee at Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. is seated at a workbench apparently testing a Cycon circuit board. This may have been in the foundry's tech center. Photograph ordered by Atlas Foundry & Machine Co.

Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. (Tacoma); Foundries--Tacoma--1970-1980; Steel industry--Tacoma--1970-1980; Product inspections--Tacoma--1970-1980; Testing--Tacoma--1970-1980;

ca. 1978. ASARCO plant. Exterior view in early 1978 of the American Smelting & Refining Company (ASARCO) with focus on large diameter fiberglas reinforced pipe manufactured by Chemical Pipe & Tank (owned by Barthel Co.) and the Barthel Co. and installed by the National Blower & Sheet Metal Co., fabricators of structural steel and miscellaneous iron. The lines may have been 33 inches on the smaller line and six feet diameter on the larger one. Photograph ordered by National Blower & Sheet Metal Co. (Additional information provided by a reader)

American Smelting & Refining Co. (Tacoma); National Blower & Sheet Metal Co. (Tacoma); Chemical Pipe & Tank Co. (Tacoma); Barthel Chemical Construction Co. (Tacoma);

ca. 1978. Elevated view of the American Smelting & Refining Co. (ASARCO) in early 1978. Photograph ordered by the National Blower & Sheet Metal Co. of Tacoma who had probably built and installed the pipes shown above. They were involved in industrial air pollution control, dust collecting and ventilating systems, metal fabrications for industrial requirements as well as building sheet metal work and electric and heli-arc welding.

American Smelting & Refining Co. (Tacoma); National Blower & Sheet Metal Co. (Tacoma); Industrial facilities--Tacoma--1970-1980;

ca. 1978. ASARCO plant. In the center of this early 1978 photograph of the American Smelting & Refining Co. plant located in Ruston is the Herreschoff Roaster baghouse that was brand new that year. It had been installed as part of ASARCO's modernization and served to curb industrial air pollution. The baghouse vented the roaster plant to the left. The arsenic plant is situated on the right. The gondola cars collected "calcine" from the arsenic roasters which was further processed. (Additional information provided by a reader) Photograph ordered by National Blower & Sheet Metal Co.

American Smelting & Refining Co. (Tacoma); Industrial facilities--Tacoma--1970-1980; National Blower & Sheet Metal Co. (Tacoma);

Groundbreaking for Atlas Foundry's $5,000,000 expansion and modernization project occurred on February 23, 1978. Standing with his foot on a shovel is company president Leo H. Long, Sr. Among those attending the ceremony were Milo S. Gates and Chuck Fausel (flanking Mr. Long). Founded in 1899, the company is now known as Atlas Castings & Technology. Photograph ordered by Atlas Foundry. (TNT 2-24-78, C-12-article on expansion)

Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. (Tacoma); Foundries--Tacoma--1970-1980; Steel industry--Tacoma--1970-1980; Ground breaking ceremonies--Tacoma--1970-1980; Shovels;

Groundbreaking at Atlas Foundry. Ground was broken on February 23, 1978, at the Atlas Foundry site for expansion and modernization of the longtime Tacoma company. Several new buildings and renovation of equipment, totaling $5,000,000, were included in the five-year plan. The company employed approximately 400 people. Pictured above is company president Leo H. Long, Sr., who is flanked by Milo S. Gates, president of Swineston & Walberg Co. and Charles "Chuck" Fausel, executive vice-president of Lester B. Knight & Associates, Inc. All three are gripping a shiny shovel with a small plaque attached. Photograph ordered by Atlas Foundry. (TNT 2-24-78, C-12-article on expansion)

Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. (Tacoma); Foundries--Tacoma--1970-1980; Steel industry--Tacoma--1970-1980; Ground breaking ceremonies--Tacoma--1970-1980; Shovels; Long, Leo H.; Gates, Milo S.; Fausel, Charles;

Industrial building with laborer in hardhat working in the foreground.

An enormous Brute Crane manufactured by the Star Iron & Steel Co. of Tacoma balances both men on board and heavy loads of plywood in this customer print copied in September, 1963. The presence of other piles of plywood near the building under construction seem to indicate that the Brute Crane has already been put to good use. Photograph ordered by Star Iron & Steel Co.

Star Iron & Steel Co. (Tacoma); Hoisting machinery; Plywood; Building construction;

Four tall smokestacks on an industrial building.

The American Smelting & Refining Co. (ASARCO Incorporated) Tacoma Plant. TPL-2353. Areas of the plant are labelled with arrows and typed notations. Typed notations read, left hand side, top to bottom: Main Stack, Silos, ESP'S (Hoppers), Flue, Metallic Arsenic Area, Arsenic Kitchens, Arsenic Roasters (Hoppers, Roaster Baghouse Hoppers, Herreshoff Roasters), Acid Plant Bldg (Settling Tanks & Basin), Fine Ore Storage (Settling, evaporation and neutralization impoundment Waste Piles), Liquid SO2 Plant. Across the top, left to right: Laboratory Container Storage, Reverberatory Furnaces, Oil Tanks, Refineries, Settling & Evaporation Basins. Right hand side, top to bottom: Slag Dump, Casting Furnace, Anode Furnaces, Nickel Plant, Converters, Unloading Dock, Crushing & Sampling Mill, Incinerator, and Ore Piles. TPL-2353, TPL-6246

American Smelting & Refining Co. (Tacoma); Smelters--Tacoma--1950-1960; Copper industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Bushnell Co. of Jacksonville, Florida, supplied crane service to this tower under construction at an unspecified harbor in this undated photograph. Customer print was copied on September 17, 1963, for Star Iron & Steel Co. of Tacoma.

Star Iron & Steel Co. (Tacoma); Hoisting machinery;

A Brute Crane manufactured by the Star Iron & Steel Co. of Tacoma is in the process of hoisting lumber at the Seattle Export Lumber Co. There are piles of lumber on both sides of the crane. Date of original photograph is unknown; copy made on September 17, 1963.

Star Iron & Steel Co. (Tacoma); Hoisting machinery; Lumber; Seattle Export Lumber Co.;