Repository
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Title Rust Engineering Company Records Creator
Rust Engineering Company
Collection Number AIS.2006.06 Extent
39.03 Linear Feet
(87 boxes, 5 rolls of microfilm, 1 oversize folder)
Date 1905-1989 Date 1908-1967 Abstract The Rust Engineering Company specialized in the design and construction of equipment and facilities for heavy industry, including furnaces, boiler settings, industrial chimneys, and entire manufacturing and processing plants. This collection documents the management of Rust Engineering's Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, headquarters by its first two presidents, Stirling Murray Rust and Stirling Murray Rust, Jr., through correspondence, job and financial reports, meeting minutes, promotional items, newspaper clippings, and photographs. Digital reproductions of the collection are available online . Language
English
. Author Carolyn Smith. Publisher ULS Archives & Special Collections Address University of Pittsburgh Library Systemhttp://library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections History
The Rust Engineering Company was founded in 1905 as a partnership between three brothers from Virginia; Ellsworth Marshall Rust (E.M. Rust), Edmund Jennings Lee Rust (Lee Rust), and Stirling Murray Rust (S.M. Rust). Originally created to handle boiler sales and brickwork for the Rust Boiler Company, which was owned by three older Rust brothers, Rust Engineering quickly expanded into other subsets of design and construction and was soon building foundations, power houses, and eventually entire manufacturing plants. Rust Engineering was also a leading builder of industrial chimneys and furnaces, which were in high demand throughout most of the twentieth century.
In 1913, Rust Engineering opened an office in Pittsburgh, where the Rust Boiler Company was already established. The small office was headed by S.M. Rust, who already had experience working in the Pittsburgh region. In 1920 the partnership was dissolved and Rust Engineering was incorporated into three separate companies based in Pittsburgh, Birmingham, and Washington, D.C. S.M. Rust became president of the Pittsburgh companies, while vice-presidents E.M. Rust and Lee Rust headed the Washington, D.C., and Birmingham companies, respectively. The partnership struggled at first, facing railroad delays, uncooperative workers, and droughts in the south. In the mid-1920s, the Washington, D.C. company was dissolved and became a sales office, and the Birmingham and Pittsburgh companies merged. The official headquarters was in Pittsburgh, but the Birmingham office continued to operate independently for many years. The company survived these initial difficulties, as well as the Depression that followed, through its versatility. By taking on everything from simple repair jobs to complex design projects, the company could adapt to major changes.
In 1939, S.M. Rust, Jr. became the operating manager for the Pittsburgh office, although his father remained president until 1944. A mechanical engineer, S.M. Rust, Jr. had the daunting task of managing a constant supply of government contracts during World War II. Rust Engineering's experience with many types of industrial construction made it ideal for wartime work.
By the 1950s, Rust Engineering was a leading engineering firm known for its furnaces, paper mills, concrete work, and "turn-key" plants, so called because the company handled everything from the blueprints to the installation of machinery, leaving the plant fully operational and the keys in the hands of management. Rust Engineering took contracts across the United States, but was especially important in Pittsburgh, where it built for Westinghouse, Pittsburgh Plate and Glass, and many of the city's steel mills. Rust Engineering also built the foundations and steel framework of the Koppers Building, one of the distinctive features of the Pittsburgh skyline.
In 1967, Rust Engineering was sold to Litton Industries. In the years following the sale, the company was merged and reassigned numerous times, and in 1971 its headquarters was moved from Pittsburgh to Birmingham, Alabama. As of 2020, Rust has been included in several acquisitions and in 2014 Rust Constructors was acquired by AECOM and its headquarters are in Houston, Texas.
Historical detail about Rust Engineering's work at times is described at the series level.
Scope and Content Notes The majority of the documents in this collection follow the Rust Engineering Company from its founding in 1905 until its sale to Litton Industries in 1967 -- the time when Rust was a family-run organization. Although it contains a variety of material, the strength of the collection lies in the correspondence and project files of the company's first two presidents, S.M. Rust and S.M. Rust, Jr., who operated from the Pittsburgh office.
Working at a time when most long-distance business communication was by letter or telegram, both presidents wrote constantly to their officers, their brothers and uncles at branch offices, foremen and site superintendents, lawyers, financial advisors, other companies, and clients. Their discussions, which are often detailed and sometimes personal, show how they handled management decisions day to day; a typical letter might inquire about a shipment of brick, settle a dispute between workers, or discuss contacts in the paper mill industry. A great deal of correspondence is devoted to individual jobs, since the presidents were ultimately responsible for arranging contracts and correcting any problems that arose, such as delays, union strikes, or unexpected costs. The frequency and detail of the letters makes it possible to see what was important in the office at nearly any time from 1918 to 1949.
Taken as a whole, the president's files demonstrate how the company reacted and adapted to the major events of the twentieth century, as well as changing ideals in business culture. Rust Engineering profited from the need for steel and steam power during the 1920s, survived the Great Depression, served the home front during World War II, and reverted to peacetime operations afterwards. In the process, Rust Engineering also transformed from a small, family-run company offering a single specific service into a large corporation overseeing multiple projects of many types across the United States and around the world.
In addition to providing a record of one company's changes over time, the collection can also be seen as the history of the careers of S.M. Rust and his son S.M. Rust, Jr. The files span S.M. Rust's career from his time as a 27-year-old worker in New Orleans, just beginning his professional work, through his retirement from the presidency in 1944. His letters are clear and logical and often explain in detail the reasoning behind the decisions he made. He was especially attentive to human resource decisions, since he believed that getting the "right man for the job" was key to the success of any business. There is little evidence of self-censorship in these files; S.M. Rust discussed the strengths and weaknesses of employees with honesty and fairness, and he did not hesitate to tell them what they did wrong. More telling, though, is that his workers often had no qualms about responding to their employer in an equally frank tone. He maintained a strong sense of loyalty to those who worked for him, and attempted to solve or prevent problems rather than simply replace a worker.
Similarly, the files trace S.M. Rust, Jr.'s transition from a management position to president of the company. Like his father, he had to make personnel decisions and was concerned with character and potential. Perhaps the most striking example is a series of letters in which S.M. Rust, Jr. is the only employer among ten companies willing to consider a former Alcatraz prisoner for a job. S.M. Rust, Jr. was also involved in the local community as a member of several social and charitable organizations.
The record of president's files ends abruptly after 1949. The few materials from after the company's sale to Litton Industries in 1967 are mostly published items, probably collected by the Rust family.
In addition to the president's files, the collection contains minute books and charters, promotional items, an extensive clipping collection, and approximately 400 photographs of construction sites and employees at work. A photo album from 1917 and 1918 captures the construction of structures for the steel industry in Alabama, including coal tipples, coke ovens, storage bins, screening plants, and blast furnaces.
Timeline
1905: The Rust Engineering Company is founded in Birmingham, Alabama, as a partnership between three brothers.
1913: Pittsburgh Office opens.
1920: Partnership is dissolved, and the company is incorporated into three financially independent companies: Rust Engineering of Delaware (Pittsburgh Office), Rust Engineering of Maryland (D.C. Office), and Rust Engineering of Alabama (Birmingham Office).
1918: Rust purchases the Birmingham Clay Products Company to manufacture brick.
1925: Eric Plagwit is hired and placed at the head of a new Chimney Department.
Mid-1920s: Rust Engineering of Maryland is dissolved, assets go to Pittsburgh.
1927: Rust's first subsidiary, the Rust Furnace Company, is formed.
1936: The Allegheny Industrial Electrical Company is formed as a subsidiary.
1938: The Woodbridge Clay Product Company becomes an affiliate.
1939: S.M. Rust, Jr. becomes operating manager of the Pittsburgh Company.
1944: S.M. Rust retires from the presidency and becomes Chairman of the Board of Directors; S.M. Rust, Jr. becomes president.
1967: Rust is bought by Litton Industries, becoming a division of that company.
1971: Rust's headquarters is moved from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Birmingham, Alabama.
1972: Rust is bought by Wheelabrator-Frye
1981: Wheelabrator-Frye acquires Pullman, Inc. Rust's northeast operations are merged with Swindell operations, forming Swindell Rust.
1981: The Rust Engineering Company becomes a division of Kellogg Rust, Inc., still owned by Wheelabrator-Frye.
1982: Kellogg Rust forms Rust International Corporation by merging all of Rust's former divisions.
1983: Wheelabrator-Frye merges with the Signal Companies, Inc. Rust becomes one of the signal companies.
1985: The Signal Companies and Allied Corporation merge into Allied-Signal, Inc.
1986: Kellogg Rust is dissolved. Rust International becomes part of Wheelabrator Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of the Henley Group, Inc. The Henley Group had been created in a spin-off of Allied-Signal to its shareholders.
1990: Waste Management Inc. becomes Rust's parent company by increasing its equity ownership of Wheelabrator Technologies.
1992: Rust International, Inc. is formed by combining parts of Waste Management companies Chemical Waste Management, Wheelabrator Technologies, and the Brand Companies.
1993: Waste Management changes its name to WMX Technologies, Inc.
1995: Rust is owned 60 percent by WMX Technologies and 40 percent by Wheelabrator Technologies.
1996: Raytheon Engineers & Constructors, part of Raytheon Company, acquires Rust.
2000: Morrison Knudsen Corporation acquires Raytheon Engineers & Constructors and creates Washington Group International, Inc. It is one of the largest engineering and construction firms in the United States. Rust is now known as Rust Constructors, Inc.
2007: Washington Group and its subsidiaries acquired by URS Corporation.
2014: URS acquired by AECOM. Rust Constructors headquarters moved to Houston, TX
Arrangement
The collection has been arranged into the following series and subseries. The president's files have been described by decade in order to highlight the changes. The presidents' office files were kept in three basic ways; correspondence between the presidents and others, files on individual jobs, and subject files containing information on particular events or problems. While they form subseries, it is important to note that they may not contain all information about a particular topic; in most cases, more information can be found in the correspondence files. Also note that while the filing system in the president's correspondence sometimes appears continuous and may contain documents from every working day, it is not a complete record. The office's main criteria for retaining documents changed over time. Please see the series and subseries notes for more detail.
Series I. Histories and General Information Series II. Minute Books, 1920-1967 Series III. President's Office Files, 1905-1919 Series IV. President's Office Files, 1920-1929 Series V. President's Office Files, 1930-1939 Series VI. President's Office Files, 1940-1941 Series VII. Affiliate Companies, 1927-1974 Series VIII. Publicity, 1920-1989 Series IX. Photographs, 1911-1967 Series X. New Materials Added, 1915-1989
Access Restrictions
No restrictions.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Stirling Murray Rust, Jr. on February 2, 2006. Additions made on December 14, 2018.
Previous Citation
Rust Engineering Company Records, 1905-1989, AIS.2006.06, Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh
Preferred Citation
Rust Engineering Company Records, 1905-1989, AIS.2006.06, Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Carolyn Smith in 2006-2007. Additions were processed by Madelyn Sheridan in 2019.
Copyright
Copyright resides with the donor, S.M. Murray Rust, Jr. Some photographs are stamped with the names of studios or photographers. These items are the intellectual property of the creator and cannot be reproduced without permission.
Existence and Location of Copies
Digital reproductions of the collection are available electronically at http://historicpittsburgh.org/collection/rust-engineering-company-records .
Separated Material
Photographs and microfilm are housed in the Media Room. Boxes 43 and 65 are oversized and housed separately.
Subjects Corporate Names Allegheny Industrial Electrical Company Rust Engineering Company Rust Furnace Company Vibroflotation Foundation Company United States. National Recovery Administration Personal Names Rust, Edmund Jennings Lee Rust, Ellsworth Marshall Rust, Stirling Murray, Jr. Rust, Stirling Murray Geographic Names Birmingham (Ala.) Holt (Ala.) New York (N.Y.) Pittsburgh (Pa.) Washington (D.C.) Occupations Executives Draftsmen (People in engineering) Genres Photograph albums Office files Minute books Microfilms Correspondence Brochures Black-and-white negatives Black-and-white photographs Construction workers Chief financial officers Clippings (Information artifacts) Other Subjects Sales personnel Engineers Bricklayers Labor unions Industrial management Industrial engineering Industrial buildings -- Foundations Business and Industry Gunite Furnaces Engineering Construction industry -- Management Coke plants Chimneys Brickmaking Mechanical engineers Boilers Mechanical engineering Paper mills Pulp mills Construction equipment operators Steam-boilers Steel industry and trade Strikes and lockouts Depressions -- 1929 Industrial engineers Container List Series I. Histories and General Information Scope and Content Notes This series contains material created or collected by Rust Engineering to document its own history. Some of the information was gathered for short articles about the company, which were written for special events or publications. The authors contacted members of the Rust family and other long-term employees for information on the company's first years, as well as their personal memories and anecdotes. Their responses are present alongside research notes and drafts of the history articles. Drafts of book entitled, Engineering for Excellence, Building for Permanence: The Rust Engineering Company, 1905-1975 , written by Norma Shields, provide a solid summary of the company's major changes and accomplishments. The company also kept newsletters and a small amount of ephemeral material in its history files, which have been included in a separate subseries.
Subseries 1. History Articles and Research Notes Scope and Content Notes Files related to history articles contain a variety of documents, including drafts, correspondence, notes, and questionnaires.
Article about the Rust Boiler Company , 1904-1907 Containers box 1 , folder 1 List of company officers , 1920-1947 Containers box 1 , folder 2 Booklet on Rust history and qualifications , 1947 Containers box 1 , folder 3 History of Rust Engineering as told by R.L. Hess , 1948 Containers box 1 , folder 4 Article, The Rust Engineering Company: A History written by J. Paul Scheetz for The Bicentennial History of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County , 1953 Containers box 1 , folder 5 Personal histories collected for History of the Rust Engineering Company by Arthur M. Lawrence , 1955 Containers box 1 , folder 6 Changes in company structure after merge with Litton Industries , 1968 Containers box 1 , folder 7 Rust's History and Experience , written for Litton Industries1969 Containers box 1 , folder 8 Drafts and correspondence for Engineering for Excellence, Building for Permanence , 1974 Containers box 2 , folder 01-03 Histories of Rust departments and subsidiaries , 1974 Containers box 2 , folder 4 Rust of Virginia: Genealogical and Biographical Sketches of the Descendents of William Rust, 1654-1940 by Ellsworth Marshall Rust1940 Containers box 2 , volume 1 Subseries 2. General Information Scope and Content Notes Rust Engineering retained examples of directories and other items published for internal use for inclusion in an archive. They provide information about the company's benefits, insurance policies, and other employee concerns. Rust Engineering's newsletter, The Rust Triangle , was published from 1957 to 1967 and contains articles on particular jobs, events, individual employees, and areas of the company otherwise unrepresented by the collection, such as the Women's Auxiliary.
General information and policies for employees , 1950s-1960s Containers box 3 , folder 01-02 Phone books , 1958-1969 Containers box 3 , folder 03-04 Birmingham Office Personnel Directory , 1964 Containers box 3 , folder 5 Pittsburgh Office Personnel Directory , c1970 Containers box 4 , folder 1 Birmingham Office Personnel Directory , c1970 Containers box 4 , folder 2 Field Office Personnel Directory , 1970 Containers box 4 , folder 3 Rust Civic Service Award and Fifty Year Medallions , 1965-1968 Containers box 4 , folder 4 Scrapbook of internal announcements and leaflets , 1959-1960 Containers box 4 , folder 5 The Rust Triangle , Vol. I-XI1957-1967 Containers box 5 , volume 01-02 Reactions to The Rust Triangle , 1957-1966 Containers box 5 , folder 1 Series II. Minute Books , 1920-1967 Scope and Content Notes Series II is comprised of bound volumes and microfilmed copies of minute books for the Rust Engineering Company of Delaware (the Pittsburgh office) and ten of Rust's subsidiaries and affiliates. They cover the time from the founding of each company or affiliate until its dissolution or until 1967, when Rust was purchased by Litton Industries.
Each set of books begins with records documenting the creation of the company, its bylaws, the minutes of its first meeting, and in some cases stock ledgers and other financial documents. After this initial information, minutes almost always represent one of three types of meetings; the Annual Meeting of Stockholders was held once a year to choose the Board of Directors for the following year. Immediately after this, at the Meeting of the Board of Directors, the board would appoint a president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. Special Meetings of the Board of Directors could be held at any time throughout the year to decide courses of action on major issues -- especially financial ones -- such as opening accounts or selling stock. Minutes for these meetings are brief, usually consisting of little more than a tally of votes and formal declarations of any decisions made that day, but they do provide a complete record of board members and officers until 1967, as well as documentation of the companies' involvement with particular regions, industries, and projects. There are also a few additional document types, including a list of the government contract projects which Rust completed during the 1940s to serve the war effort.
Minutes were originally bound into books, but in some cases only microfilmed copies remain. It is likely that the originals were passed to Litton Industries when the company was sold. A paper index to the microfilmed books can be found in box 8.
Potomac Clay Products Company , 1929-1930 Containers box 5 , volume 3 Bolivar Clay Products Company Minute Book, Vol. 1-2 , 1921-1959 Containers box 6 , volume 01-02 Rust Construction Company , 1927-1934 Containers box 7 , volume 1 Rust Gunite Company, 1930 Containers box 7 , volume 2 Loudoun-Rust Company Minute Book , 1930-1934 Containers box 7 , volume 3 Rust Engineering minute books , 1920-1943 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 1 Rust Engineering minute books , 1945-1956 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 2 Rust Engineering minute books , 1957-1960 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 3.1 Vibroflotation Foundation Co. minute books , 1953-c1966 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 3.2 Vibroflotaion Foundation Co. minute book , 1966-1997 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 4.1 Allegheny Industrial Electrical Co. minute books , 1936-1967 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 4.2 Rust Furnace Co. minute books , 1929-1947 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 4.3 Rust Furnace Co. minute book , 1957-1967 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 5.1 Doyle and Russell, Inc. minute book , 1962-1967 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 5.2 Rust Engineering Co. (Canada) Ltd. minute book , 1936-1967 Containers microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 microfilm-cabinet 3 , drawer 8 , reel 5.3 Series III. President's Office Files , 1905-1919 Scope and Content Notes Rust Engineering was founded in 1905, but little survives from its first few years in Alabama, when the company installed boilers for the Rust Boiler Company. The earliest letters, written from 1907 to 1910, are between officers at both Rust Engineering and the Rust Boiler Company in Alabama and S.M. Rust, who had been sent to New Orleans in an attempt to break into the boiler market. Letters from the sales department instruct him on marketing the company to this part of the south.
Despite his southern roots, S.M. Rust was no stranger to Pittsburgh when the Rust Engineering office opened there in 1913. He had moved to the city at the age of seventeen to work in the steel mills, where he was a laborer, blueprint boy, and eventually a member of design and engineering departments. The new office employed a small team of engineers, but jobs were non-existent at first. One employee, looking back, credited S.M. Rust holding the company together with only "good humor, his companionship and his fellowship with his employees," because the company could not afford to pay them.
Files from these first years in Pittsburgh are sparse compared to later years, but most discuss the brickwork and boiler jobs that the company was able to acquire.
Subseries 1. Correspondence Scope and Content Notes Items in this subseries are not in original order, but have been filed chronologically by month. When exchanges covering several months were found together, they were filed by the date of the earliest letter
S.M. Rust correspondence , 1907 Containers box 9 , folder 01-02 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-November, 1908 Containers box 9 , folder 03-06 S.M. Rust correspondence , 1910-1915 Containers box 9 , folder 7 S.M. Rust correspondence , 1915 Containers box 9 , folder 8 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-July, 1916 Containers box 9 , folder 9 S.M. Rust correspondence , August, 1916 Containers box 10 , folder 1 S.M. Rust correspondence , 1917 Containers box 10 , folder 2 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-August, 1918 Containers box 10 , folder 03-04 S.M. Rust correspondence , September-December, 1918 Containers box 10 , folder 5 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-September, 1919 Containers box 10 , folder 06-08 S.M. Rust correspondence , October-December, 1919 Containers box 11 , folder 1 Subseries 2. Subject Files Scope and Content Notes The subject files from this period are mainly financial reports tracking the company's progress. The Boiler Brickwork Quantity Sheets give specifics for the amount of brick needed to complete a given job.
"Early years" , 1905-1919 Containers box 11 , folder 2 Financial agreements , 1914 Containers box 11 , folder 3 Financial statements , 1916 Containers box 11 , folder 4 Business report , 1918 Containers box 11 , folder 5 Boiler Brickwork Quantity Sheets , February 12, 1918 Containers box 11 , folder 06-07 Business reports , April and July, 1919 Containers box 11 , folder 8 Financial information , 1919 Containers box 11 , folder 9 Series IV. President's Office Files , 1920-1929 Scope and Content Notes This series documents Rust Engineering's efforts to establish itself in Pittsburgh and its eventual prosperity during the Roaring Twenties. In 1920, the Rust Engineering partnership was dissolved and the company was incorporated into three functionally separate entities; the Rust Engineering Company of Delaware (Pittsburgh office), headed by S.M. Rust, the Rust Engineering Company of Maryland (Washington, D.C. office) and the Rust Engineering Company of Alabama (Birmingham office). Each company took jobs in its respective region and functioned independently from the others, but S.M. Rust was president of Rust Engineering as a whole and received reports from all offices. During the mid-1920s, the Maryland company was dissolved and transferred its assets to Pittsburgh, becoming a branch specializing in sales for the Pittsburgh office.
Much of the correspondence from the early 1920s concerns problems with particular jobs and attempts to correct them. Although some of the delays were related to weather conditions and railway strikes, problems were most often attributed to personnel; there is much discussion of habits and character as they apply to work, and the letters are surprisingly emotional and dynamic, but also fair. Other conversations concern orders and shipments, salaries and wages, attempts to land desirable jobs, and occasional run-ins with unions, particularly Pittsburgh Bricklayers Union No. 2. A series of letters between all three brothers, placed in a folder labeled "hard times," discusses the strain of financial difficulties on both the company and the family.
Despite the hardship, Rust Engineering took many jobs, especially to install boilers and build complete power houses and incinerators. In 1925, the company hired experienced chimney engineer Eric Plagwit and formed the Chimney Division, which would go on to erect more than 3,000 concrete and brick industrial chimneys. Rust's Furnace Division, which specialized in the design and installation of large furnaces for heating steel and other metals, became a wholly-owned subsidiary in 1927 and thrived from then on. More information about the Rust Furnace Division can be found in Series VII.
Subseries 1. Correspondence Scope and Content Notes Items in this subseries are not in original order, but have been filed chronologically by month. When exchanges covering several months were found together, they were filed by the date of the earliest letter. In addition to general correspondence, there are also files of letters between the Pittsburgh office and other branch offices. These interoffice files are present throughout the rest of the collection.
S.M. Rust correspondence regarding incorporation , 1920 Containers box 11 , folder 10 S.M. Rust correspondence , 1920 Containers box 11 , folder 11 Correspondence between S.M. Rust and E.M. Rust , 1920 Containers box 12 , folder 1 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1921 Containers box 12 , folder 02-04 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1922 Containers box 12 , folder 05-08 "Hard Times" correspondence between Rust brothers , 1922 Containers box 13 , folder 1 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1923 Containers box 13 , folder 02-03 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1924 Containers box 13 , folder 04-05 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-August 1925 Containers box 13 , folder 06-07 S.M. Rust correspondence , September-December 1925 Containers box 14 , folder 01-02 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1926 Containers box 14 , folder 03-06 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1927 Containers box 15 , folder 01-04 New York Office correspondence , 1927 Containers box 15 , folder 5 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1927 Containers box 15 , folder 6 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1928 Containers box 16 , folder 01-04 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1928 Containers box 16 , folder 5 New York Office correspondence , 1928 Containers box 16 , folder 6 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1929 Containers box 16 , folder 07-10 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1929 Containers box 17 , folder 1 New York Office correspondence , 1929 Containers box 17 , folder 2 Washington Office correspondence , 1929 Containers box 17 , folder 3 Abstracts of New York mail , 1925-1927 Containers box 17 , folder 04-06 Personal mail and trade articles , 1920-1929 Containers box 17 , folder 07-08 Subseries 2. Job Files Scope and Content Notes Job files contain documents related to the acquisition of jobs, such as proposals and contracts, as well as folders on individual jobs filed alphabetically by client name. More information about these jobs, as well as those which did not receive their own folders, can be found in the correspondence files. The type of work, location, job number, and dates have been included where possible
Inquiries handled by New York Office , 1925-1926 Containers box 17 , folder 9 Inquiry reports, interoffice , 1926 Containers box 17 , folder 10 Inquiries and proposals for boilers and furnaces , 1927-1928 Containers box 17 , folder 11 Prospect reports , 1928 Containers box 17 , folder 12 Proposal file , 1928-1929 Containers box 17 , folder 13-14 List of foremen , 1928 Containers box 17 , folder 15 Chimney contracts , c1925 Containers box 18 , folder 1 Contract reports , 1926-1929 Containers box 18 , folder 02-04 American State Bank, office building at Grant & Sixth, Pittsburgh, PA (Job #101) , 1927-1928 Containers box 18 , folder 05-06 Balmer Company, incinerator, Floral Park, NY , 1925 Containers box 18 , folder 7 Ford Motor Company, manufacturing plant, Chester, PA (Job #1600) , 1926-1931 Containers box 18 , folder 08-09 Davison Coke & Iron Company, cement plant, Neville Island, PA (Job #2150) , 1928-1929 Containers box 18 , folder 10 Delaware River Steel Company, blast furnace, Chester, PA (Job #1797) , 1927 Containers box 18 , folder 11 Henry Clay Hotel Company, 8-story hotel building, Ashland, KY (Job # 1828) , 1927 Containers box 18 , folder 12 Koppers Construction Company, Koppers Building, Pittsburgh, PA , 1927-1928 Containers box 18 , folder 13 Koppers Construction Company, Koppers Building, Pittsburgh, PA , 1927-1929 Containers box 19 , folder 01-03 Koppers Seaboard By-Product Coke Company, office buildings at Waverly, NJ and Clifton, NJ , 1929 Containers box 19 , folder 4 Koppers Seaboard Company, office building, Kearny, NJ , 1929 Containers box 19 , folder 5 Koppers Seaboard Co., office building, Jamaica Yard, NY (Job #2370) , 1929 Containers box 19 , folder 6 Published plan for Koppers Construction Co. By-Product Recovery Plant , undated Containers box 19 , folder 7 New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad, boiler settings, Van Nest, NJ (Job #2192) , 1929 Containers box 19 , folder 8 Packard Motor Car Company, contract for additions to a building, Pittsburgh, PA (Job #104) , 1928 Containers box 19 , folder 09-11 Phoenix Utility Company, chimneys, Trinidad, TX , 1925 Containers box 19 , folder 12 Raleigh-Wyoming Coal Company, construction work, Glen Rogers, WV (Job # 1227) , 1921 Containers box 20 , folder 1 U.S. Government, addition to a government printing office, Washington, D.C. , 1928-1929 Containers box 20 , folder 2 YMCA, building, Newell, PA (Job #102) , 1928 Containers box 20 , folder 03-04 Subseries 3. Subject Files Scope and Content Notes There are several files related to the dissolution of the partnership and creation of the three companies, as well as information about Rust's attempts to purchase brick plants.
Dissolution of Partnership , 1920 Containers box 20 , folder 5 Annual meetings and stocks , 1920-1924 Containers box 20 , folder 6 J.B. Mingle vs. Rust Engineering , 1921 Containers box 20 , folder 7 Agreements with other companies , 1922 Containers box 20 , folder 8 Expenses related to International Bricklayers and Plasterers Union Local #2,June 17 , 1922 Containers box 20 , folder 9 Annual report of Washington, D.C. Office , 1923 Containers box 20 , folder 10 Financial information , 1923-1928 Containers box 20 , folder 11 Receipted invoices , 1924-1926 Containers box 20 , folder 12 New Hope Brick Company, purchase of plant , 1925 Containers box 20 , folder 13 John Fenson Company, sales , 1925-1926 Containers box 20 , folder 14 Applications for a construction executive position , 1926 Containers box 20 , folder 15-16 Cumberland Brick Company: lease , 1926 Containers box 21 , folder 1 Potomac Fire Brick Company; purchase of plant , 1926 Containers box 21 , folder 2 Valley Fruit Company vs. Rust Engineering , 1926 Containers box 21 , folder 3 Report of profits and losses , 1926 Containers box 21 , folder 4 International Cement Corporation , 1927 Containers box 21 , folder 5 Portable boiler , 1927 Containers box 21 , folder 6 Proposed purchase of brick plant , 1927 Containers box 21 , folder 7 Discussion on Piercing Mill Furnace Design August 7, 1928 Containers box 21 , folder 8 Patent: Method of and Apparatus for Supporting the Side Walls of Excavations , 1928 Containers box 21 , folder 9 Proposed Chimney Builders Association , 1928 Containers box 21 , folder 10 Report of profits and losses , 1928 Containers box 21 , folder 11 Woodbridge Property for brick manufacturing , 1928-1929 Containers box 21 , folder 12-13 Letters of recommendation by S.M. Rust , 1928-1930 Containers box 21 , folder 14 Drawings, Study for River-Rail Terminal , February, 1929 Containers box 21 , folder 15 Series V. President's Office Files , 1930-1939 Scope and Content Notes The stock market crash of October 29, 1929, impacted Rust Engineering as it did nearly all businesses. Correspondence from this time shows that in the early 1930s, the company was forced to let many employees go and cut the salaries of most others, often more than once. S.M. Rust pulled funds from his personal savings to secure loans. Rust Engineering survived the hardship through its versatility, taking on any jobs, large or small, that it could secure.
In 1936, the National Recovery Administration's (NRA) "codes of fair competition" became a major concern for Rust Engineering and many other corporations. Part of Roosevelt's New Deal to restore the economy and pull the nation out of depression, NRA codes were intended to discourage aggressive competition by setting minimum wages and maximum hours for workers. Following the codes was not required by law, but public boycotts of companies that could not display the Blue Eagle symbol of compliance pressured businesses to conform. Rust Engineering was affected by a number of codes, and fearing that the cuts were too drastic and could severely impair the company's ability to function, E.M. Rust of the Washington office formed a committee to have certain exceptions made under the constructor's code. He argued that "engineering constructors", which handle both design work and construction, operate differently than pure construction companies and required different rules. The NRA code files contain correspondence and other documents that trace these efforts, which were ultimately successful.
During the 1930s, S.M. Rust, Jr. worked closely with his father and became operating manager in 1939. S.M. Rust, Sr., still president, began building his estate "Murray Hill" in Leesburg, Virginia, and had his son and other officers send daily reports to keep track of office activity. After 1939, the files become primarily those of S.M.Rust, Jr.
Subseries 1. Correspondence S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1930 Containers box 22 , folder 01-04 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1930 Containers box 22 , folder 5 New York Office correspondence , 1930 Containers box 22 , folder 6 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1930 Containers box 22 , folder 07-08 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1931 Containers box 22 , folder 09-10 Correspondence between S.M. Rust and C.F. Drew , 1931 Containers box 23 , folder 01-02 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1931 Containers box 23 , folder 3 New York Office correspondence , 1931 Containers box 23 , folder 4 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1931 Containers box 23 , folder 5 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-August 1932 Containers box 23 , folder 06-08 S.M. Rust correspondence , September-December 1932 Containers box 24 , folder 1 Correspondence between S.M. Rust and C.F. Drew , 1932 Containers box 24 , folder 2 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1932 Containers box 24 , folder 3 New York Office correspondence , 1932 Containers box 24 , folder 4 Philadelphia Office correspondence , 1932-1939 Containers box 24 , folder 5 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1932 Containers box 24 , folder 06-07 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1933 Containers box 24 , folder 08-09 Correspondence between S.M. Rust and C.F. Drew , 1933 Containers box 24 , folder 10 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1933 Containers box 24 , folder 11 New York Office correspondence , 1933 Containers box 24 , folder 12 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1933 Containers box 25 , folder 1 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence -- E.M. Rust , 1933 Containers box 25 , folder 02-03 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1934 Containers box 25 , folder 04-07 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1934 Containers box 25 , folder 8 New York Office correspondence , 1934 Containers box 25 , folder 9 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1934 Containers box 25 , folder 10-11 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1935 Containers box 26 , folder 01-02 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1935 Containers box 26 , folder 3 New York Office correspondence , 1935 Containers box 26 , folder 4 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1935 Containers box 26 , folder 05-07 S.M. Rust Day File , January-December 1935 Containers box 26 , folder 08-10 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1936 Containers box 27 , folder 01-04 Correspondence between S.M. Rust and C.F. Drew , 1936 Containers box 27 , folder 5 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1936 Containers box 27 , folder 6 Chicago Office correspondence , 1936 Containers box 27 , folder 7 New York Office correspondence , 1936 Containers box 27 , folder 8 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1936 Containers box 27 , folder 09-12 S.M. Rust Day File , January-December 1936 Containers box 28 , folder 01-04 S.M. Rust correspondence , January-December 1937 Containers box 28 , folder 05-07 Interoffice correspondence , 1937 Containers box 29 , folder 1 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1937 Containers box 29 , folder 2 Chicago Office correspondence , 1937 Containers box 29 , folder 2 New York Office correspondence , 1937 Containers box 29 , folder 3 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1937 Containers box 29 , folder 04-06 S.M. Rust Day File , January-February 1937 Containers box 29 , folder 7 S.M. Rust Day File , March-December 1937 Containers box 30 , folder 01-05 S.M. Rust Correspondence , 1938 Containers box 30 , folder 6 S.M. Rust Correspondence , 1938 Containers box 31 , folder 01-02 S.M. Rust Day File , January-September 1938 Containers box 31 , folder 03-07 S.M. Rust Day File , October-December 1938 Containers box 32 , folder 01-02 General Day File , March-December 1938 Containers box 32 , folder 03-09 Birmingham Office correspondence , March-April 1938 Containers box 32 , folder 10 Birmingham Office correspondence , May-December 1938 Containers box 33 , folder 01-03 Chicago Office correspondence , 1938 Containers box 33 , folder 4 New York Office correspondence , 1938 Containers box 33 , folder 5 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1938 Containers box 33 , folder 06-07 Correspondence , 1939 Containers box 34 , folder 1 S.M. Rust Day File , January-August 1939 Containers box 34 , folder 02-03 S.M. Rust, Jr. Day File , January-December 1939 Containers box 34 , folder 04-05 Correspondence between S.M. Rust and C.F. Drew , 1939 Containers box 34 , folder 06-07 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1939 Containers box 34 , folder 8 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1939 Containers box 35 , folder 1 New York Office correspondence , 1939 Containers box 35 , folder 2 Personal mail and trade articles , 1930-1939 Containers box 35 , folder 03-04 Subseries 2. Job Files Scope and Content Notes Job files contain documents related to the acquisition of jobs, such as proposals and contracts, as well as folders on individual jobs filed alphabetically by client name. More information about these jobs, as well as those which did not receive their own folders can be found in the correspondence files. The type of work, location, job number, and dates have been included where possible.
Prospects , 1930 Containers box 35 , folder 5 Prospects handled by R.R. Cutler , 1930-1938 Containers box 35 , folder 6 Prospects handled by John English , 1931 Containers box 35 , folder 7 Prospects handled by C.A. Sheldon , 1931-1932 Containers box 35 , folder 8 Prospects handled by G.P. Prather , 1938 Containers box 35 , folder 9 Proposals , 1930 Containers box 35 , folder 10 Contracts , 1930-1939 Containers box 35 , folder 11-13 Contracts , 1938-1939 Containers box 36 , folder 1 Construction Department contracts , 1931 Containers box 36 , folder 2 Labor cost reports by contract , 1930-1931 Containers box 36 , folder 03-05 Bartlett Hayward Company, gas holder foundations (Job #3026) Chillum Road, MD , 1934-1935 Containers box 36 , folder 06-07 Charles L. Stockhausen & Co., architect, government funded apartment complex, Pittsburgh, PA , 1931 Containers box 36 , folder 8 City of Pittsburgh, garbage incinerators , 1932 Containers box 36 , folder 9 District of Columbia, "O" Street and Georgetown incinerators (Job #2817& 2843), Washington, D.C. , 1931-1932 Containers box 36 , folder 10 District of Columbia, district heating system (proposal by Rust) , 1935 Containers box 37 , folder 1 Georgia School of Technology, School of Aeronautics, wind tunnel, Atlanta, Georgia , 1931 Containers box 37 , folder 2 Gulf Refining Company, pump house (Job #2629), Cleves, Ohio , 1931 Containers box 37 , folder 3 Guntersville Bridge blueprint (client unknown) , 1938 Containers box 37 , folder 4 H. Craig Severance, Inc., apartment house, Pittsburgh, PA , 1931 Containers box 37 , folder 5 Town of Leesburg, VA, sewage system and disposal plant, Leesburg, VA , 1935-1936 Containers box 37 , folder 6 Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, rebuilding boilers, Sayre, PA , 1930 Containers box 37 , folder 7 Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, railroad bridge (Job# 2778-9), Weequahic Park, NJ , 1932 Containers box 37 , folder 08-09 Pangborn Corporation, building (Job #2900), Hagerstown, MD , 1932-1934 Containers box 37 , folder 10 Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company, brickwork (Job #3147), Mt. Vernon, Ohio , 1935-1936 Containers box 37 , folder 11 Southern States Cooperative Mills, grain elevator (Job #3127), Baltimore, MD , 1934 Containers box 37 , folder 12 Tennessee Valley Authority, alterations to Tennessee River Bridge (Job #3626), Guntersville, AL , 1938 Containers box 37 , folder 13 Tennessee Valley Authority, blast furnace, Muscle Shoals, AL , 1934 Containers box 37 , folder 14 Terry Steam Turbine Company, plant, Hartford, CT , 1934 Containers box 37 , folder 15 Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company -- warehouse, (Job #2882), Mansfield, Ohio , 1932 Containers box 37 , folder 16 Westvaco Chlorine Products, Inc., plant, South Charleston, WV , 1931 Containers box 37 , folder 17 Wheeling Steel Corporation, mill foundations (Job #3062), location unknown , 1934 Containers box 38 , folder 1 U.S. Government (War Department), addition to Wright Field heating plant (Job #3051), Wright, Ohio , 1934-1936 Containers box 38 , folder 2 Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company, mill foundations (Job #3103), Youngstown, Ohio , 1934-1935 Containers box 38 , folder 3 Unknown company and project, riots at job (Job# 2776-2777), Ashland, KY , 1932 Containers box 38 , folder 4 Subseries 3. Paper Mill Job Files Scope and Content Notes General files on paper mill jobs are filed by year at the start of the series, while individual jobs are arranged alphabetically by company name.
Paper mills, multiple jobs , 1934-1937 Containers box 38 , folder 05-09 Paper mills, multiple jobs , 1938-1939 Containers box 39 , folder 1 Paper mill issue of The Tidewater News , 1938 Containers box 39 , folder 2 Albemarle Paper Manufacturing Company, Brooks-Scanlon Corporation -- plant, Richmond, VA , 1939 Containers box 39 , folder 3 Brooks-Scanlon Corporation, kraft Mill, Foley, FL , 1937-1938 Containers box 39 , folder 4 Chesapeake-Camp Paper Company contract, paper mill, Franklin, VA , 1936-1937 Containers box 39 , folder 05-09 Chesapeake-Camp Paper Company, paper mill, Franklin, VA , 1937-1938 Containers box 40 , folder 01-02 Crossett Lumber Company, kraft pulp and paper mill (Job # 3617), Crossett, AR , January-September 1936 Containers box 40 , folder 03-05 Crossett Lumber Company, kraft pulp and paper mill, Crossett, AR , October, 1936-January 1939 Containers box 41 , folder 01-05 Crossett Mill progress reports , 1937 Containers box 41 , folder 6 Crossett Mill cost estimates , 1938 Containers box 41 , folder 7 Equitable Paper Bag Company, Inc., pulp mill, Orange, TX , 1936-1937 Containers box 41 , folder 8 Fernandina Pulp and Paper Company, pulp mill (Job #3551), Fernandina, FL , 1938-1939 Containers box 41 , folder 9 Florida Pulp and Paper Company, pulp and paper mill (Job #3960), Pensacola, FL , c1937 Containers box 42 , folder 1 Hollingsworth & Whitney Company, paper mill, Mobile, AL , 1938-1939 Containers box 42 , folder 2 Hytest Newsprint Company, newsprint mill, Rome, GA , 1936-1937 Containers box 42 , folder 3 Riegel Paper Company, paper and pulp mill, Acme, NC , 1938 Containers box 42 , folder 4 Rust Family, S.M. Rust Residence "Murray Hill", Leesburg, VA (Job #IB3598) , 1939 Containers box 42 , folder 5 St. Joe Paper Company, paper mill, St. Joe, FL , 1936-1937 Containers box 42 , folder 6 Southern Kraft Corporation, recovery plant, Panama City, FL , 1930 Containers box 42 , folder 7 Southland Paper Company, paper mill, Lufkin, TX , 1937-1938 Containers box 42 , folder 8 Subseries 4. Subject Files Patent Applications , 1930-1936 Containers box 43.1 , oversize 1 Blueprints and instructions for the Furnace and Chimney Divisions , 1930 Containers box 44 , folder 1 Accident reports and insurance policies , 1930 Containers box 44 , folder 2 Purchase of Vulcan Tile and Brick Company , 1930 Containers box 44 , folder 3 Patents for steam heating devices , 1930-1931 Containers box 44 , folder 4 Financial Information handled by C.F. Drew , 1930-1937 Containers box 44 , folder 5 Purchase of plant from Elkland Fire Brick Company , 1931 Containers box 44 , folder 6 Articles on price fixing, wages, and economic decline , c1931 Containers box 44 , folder 7 Negotiations with the Pittsburgh Cut Stone Company , 1942 Containers box 44 , folder 8 Bulletins from the Chamber of Commerce of Pittsburgh , 1932-1936 Containers box 44 , folder 10 Cold Metal Process Company, controlling stock , 1933-1934 Containers box 44 , folder 12 NRA Codes , 1933 Containers box 44 , folder 13-14 NRA Codes by Associated General Contractors of America , 1933 Containers box 44 , folder 15 NRA Codes by the Engineering Constructors Group , 1933 Containers box 45 , folder 1 NRA Codes , 1934 Containers box 45 , folder 02-04 Settlement of A.H. Blair account , 1934-1935 Containers box 45 , folder 5 Birmingham Fabricating Company agreements , 1934-1935 Containers box 45 , folder 6 Purchase of Woodbridge Brick Plant , 1936-1937 Containers box 45 , folder 7 Sales representative in Carolinas, T.C. Heyward , 1936 Containers box 45 , folder 8 Legal council on the Fair Labor Act of 1938 and other issues , 1938-1940 Containers box 45 , folder 9 Purchase and management of Virginia Highlands Property , 1935-1937 Containers box 45 , folder 10 Masonry Chimney Association , 1936 Containers box 45 , folder 11 Agreements and cost sheets , undated Containers box 45 , folder 12 Series VI. President's Office Files , 1940-1949 Scope and Content Notes Even before the U.S. entered World War II, jobs became more available as the nation began building its defenses. By 1941, the company was working almost exclusively on government-funded projects across the United States. Rust Engineering's skill in building large plants made it ideal for the jobs, which included the construction of navy shipyards, machine shop and assembly buildings, shell forging and machining plants, and ordnance plants. Some projects, such as a Naval Ordnance Plant in Canton, Ohio, employed hundreds of employees and operated on 24-hour shifts. The company was particularly proud of this plant, which was completed ahead of schedule and contained what one worker called "the prettiest machine shop I ever saw."
To complete this work, Rust had to navigate the many restrictions and regulations on the use of raw materials, and a significant amount of correspondence is dedicated to dealing with rationing boards and securing salaries for workers. Private work did continue, and Rust built boiler houses, blast furnaces, and stove foundations for steel mills.
Most wartime work was overseen by S.M. Rust, Jr., who was vice-president at the time. S.M. Rust, Sr. did not retire from the presidency until 1945, when he became Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Rust Engineering's opportunities for jobs only rose after the war, as it repaired overworked machinery and converted now-obsolete war factories into peacetime enterprises. As the nation entered the Space Age, the company also worked on nuclear energy projects and structures for NASA.
The files taper off and end by 1949. It is possible that records from the 1950s went on to Litton Industries, which purchased Rust in 1967. Some information about Rust's activities during the 1950s and beyond can be found in Series VIII.
Subseries 1. Correspondence Scope and Content Notes Records from the 1940s are made up almost entirely of Day Files, consisting of copies of outgoing correspondence written by S.M. Rust, Jr., and interoffice files containing both incoming and outgoing mail. There are no job files and few subject files, but despite the limitations a great deal of information about company activity can be found in the correspondence. The interoffice files are much more extensive than earlier, possibly because of better record keeping techniques, but more likely because the offices had to work together constantly to keep up with government projects; many letters were sent between branch offices every day, often by airmail, as Rust coordinated numerous jobs around the country.
General Correspondence , 1940 Containers box 46 , folder 1 S.M. Rust, Jr. Day File , January-December 1940 Containers box 46 , folder 02-04 S.M. Rust and S.M. Rust, Jr. Day File , January-October 1940 Containers box 46 , folder 05-06 S.M. Rust and S.M. Rust, Jr. Correspondence , January-December 1940 Containers box 46 , folder 7 Daily reports from Pittsburgh Office to S.M. Rust , 1940 Containers box 46 , folder 8 S.M. Rust, Jr., personal , 1940 Containers box 46 , folder 9 Interoffice correspondence , 1940 Containers box 47 , folder 1 Birmingham Office correspondence , January-December 1940 Containers box 47 , folder 02-04 Los Angeles Office correspondence , 1940 Containers box 47 , folder 5 New York Office correspondence , 1940 Containers box 47 , folder 6 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , October-December 1940 Containers box 47 , folder 07-08 Windsor Office correspondence , 1940 Containers box 47 , folder 9 General correspondence , 1941 Containers box 48 , folder 1 S.M. Rust and S.M. Rust, Jr. Day File , January-December 1941 Containers box 48 , folder 02-04 Daily reports from Pittsburgh Office to SMR , 1941 Containers box 48 , folder 5 Daily Reports from SMR, Jr. to SMR , 1941 Containers box 48 , folder 6 Birmingham Office correspondence , January-March 1941 Containers box 48 , folder 07-09 Birmingham Office correspondence , April-November 1941 Containers box 49 , folder 01-08 Birmingham Office correspondence , December 1941 Containers box 50 , folder 1 Chicago Office correspondence , 1941 Containers box 50 , folder 02-03 Los Angeles Office correspondence , 1941 Containers box 50 , folder 4 Montreal Office correspondence , 1941 Containers box 50 , folder 5 New York Office correspondence , 1941 Containers box 50 , folder 06-07 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , January-June 1941 Containers box 50 , folder 08-09 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , July-December 1941 Containers box 51 , folder 01-02 General correspondence , 1942 Containers box 51 , folder 3 W.B. Gillies correspondence , 1942 Containers box 51 , folder 04-06 S.M. Rust personal correspondence , 1942 Containers box 51 , folder 7 S.M. Rust, Jr. and Day File, First-Second Quarter , 1942 Containers box 51 , folder 08-09 S.M. Rust, Jr. and Day File, Third Quarter , 1942 Containers box 52 , folder 1 Interoffice correspondence , January-December 1942 Containers box 52 , folder 02-04 Birmingham Office correspondence , January-March 1942 Containers box 52 , folder 05-07 Birmingham Office correspondence,April-September , 1942 Containers box 53 , folder 1 Birmingham Office correspondence , October-December 1942 Containers box 54 , folder 01-03 Los Angeles Office correspondence , 1942 Containers box 54 , folder 4 New York Office correspondence , 1942 Containers box 54 , folder 5 Philadelphia Office correspondence , 1942 Containers box 54 , folder 6 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , January-February 1942 Containers box 54 , folder 07-08 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , March-April 1942 Containers box 55 , folder 01-05 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , May-December 1942 Containers box 55 , folder 2 General correspondence , 1943 Containers box 55 , folder 6 S.M. Rust, Jr. Day File, First-Third Quarter , 1943 Containers box 55 , folder 07-09 S.M. Rust, Jr. Day File, Fourth Quarter , 1943 Containers box 56 , folder 1 Interoffice, First Quarter , 1943 Containers box 56 , folder 2 Interoffice, Third-Fourth Quarter , 1943 Containers box 56 , folder 03-04 Birmingham Office correspondence , January 1943 Containers box 56 , folder 05-09 Birmingham Office correspondence , June-December 1943 Containers box 57 , folder 01-07 Los Angeles Office correspondence , 1943 Containers box 57 , folder 8 New York Office correspondence , 1943 Containers box 57 , folder 9 Washington, D.C. Office correspondence , 1943 Containers box 58 , folder 01-02 General correspondence , 1944 Containers box 58 , folder 03-04 S.M. Rust, Jr. correspondence , 1944 Containers box 58 , folder 5 S.M. Rust, Jr. Day File, Second-Fourth Quarter , 1944 Containers box 58 , folder 06-08 S.M. Rust, Jr. correspondence , 1944 Containers box 58 , folder 9 General correspondence , 1945 Containers box 58 , folder 10 S.M. Rust Day File , January-September 1945 Containers box 58 , folder 11-13 S.M. Rust Day File , October-December 1945 Containers box 59 , folder 1 S.M. Rust General Correspondence , 1946 Containers box 59 , folder 2 S.M. Rust Day File, First-Fourth Quarter , 1946 Containers box 59 , folder 03-06 S.M. Rust Interoffice , 1946 Containers box 59 , folder 7 Interoffice , 1946 Containers box 59 , folder 8 S.M. Rust Day File , January-December 1947 Containers box 59 , folder 09-10 S.M. Rust, Jr. personal file , 1947 Containers box 59 , folder 11 General Correspondence , 1948 Containers box 60 , folder 1 S.M. Rust Day File , January-December 1948 Containers box 60 , folder 02-03 Birmingham Office correspondence , 1948 Containers box 60 , folder 4 S.M. Rust Day File , January-December 1949 Containers box 60 , folder 05-06 S.M. Rust Personal File , 1949 Containers box 60 , folder 7 S.M. Rust, Jr. personal file , 1949 Containers box 60 , folder 8 S.M. Rust personal correspondence , 1950-1953 Containers box 60 , folder 9 Subseries 2. Subject Files Salary raises and financial information , 1940-1942 Containers box 60 , folder 10 Contracts , 1940-1942 Containers box 60 , folder 11-12 Board of Directors and Stockholders Meeting minutes , 1940 Containers box 61 , folder 1 Daily reports from H.J. Bawser to S.M. Rust , April-May 1940 Containers box 61 , folder 2 Job application by prisoner Walker Buckner , 1940 Containers box 61 , folder 3 Salary Records , 1940-1942 Containers box 61 , folder 4 Completed questionnaire on construction practices for Associated General Contractors of America , 1941 Containers box 61 , folder 5 Legal information handled by Bayard Baldridge , 1942 Containers box 61 , folder 6 Balance sheets , 1942 Containers box 61 , folder 7 Fuel oil rationing , 1942 Containers box 61 , folder 8 Gasoline rationing , 1943 Containers box 61 , folder 9 Insurance , 1943 Containers box 61 , folder 10 War Department survey of personnel, services, completed projects , 1943 Containers box 61 , folder 11-12 Qualifications and histories of key personnel for Army records , 1943 Containers box 61 , folder 13 China-America Council of Commerce and Industry, Inc. , 1944 Containers box 61 , folder 14 Proposed international work in South America , 1944 Containers box 61 , folder 15 Law Office of Miller and Chevalier , 1944-1945 Containers box 61 , folder 16 Report to Reconstruction Finance Corporation Relative to Gadsden Ordnance Plant, Gadsden, Alabama 1945 Containers box 61 , folder 17 Anthony Bruyaux -- post-war surplus plants , 1945 Containers box 62 , folder 1 Drawing: Oil and air piping layout for No. 7 periodic circular kiln, Harbison Walker Refectories , 1946 Containers box 62 , folder 2 Proposed incinerator for the Town of Leesburg, Virginia , 1946 Containers box 62 , folder 3 Wage and fuel expenses , 1947 Containers box 62 , folder 4 Birmingham Office analysis , 1939-1949 Containers box 62 , folder 5 Series VII. Affiliate Companies Scope and Content Notes This series contains documents related to Rust Engineering's many subsidiaries, franchises, and other affiliate companies. In the early 1920s, Rust Engineering was made up of several divisions and departments. As the company expanded, affiliates were formed to specialize in specific services. This enabled the company to effectively handle, for example, both the construction work and the electrical work on a single plant, or to manufacture the brick that the Chimney Department required rather than purchase it from another company. Most subsidiaries could also take jobs on their own and operate somewhat independently from the larger company.
Rust Engineering's first subsidiary was the Rust Furnace Company, which was created from the Furnace Division in 1927. Known for its patented triple-fired continuous furnace, which could heat steel from above and below at a rapid rate, the Rust Furnace Company could also custom-design, engineer, install, and repair all other types of industrial furnaces. The company provided furnaces for many of Pittsburgh's steel mills as well as for companies as far away as New Zealand and South Africa. Other successful subsidiaries include the Allegheny Industrial Electrical Company, which installed electrical systems for large plants, and the Vibroflotation Foundation Company, which used a unique process to build foundations on unstable ground by injecting sand into soil.
The series also contains information on Coppee-Rust, a joint subsidiary created in 1962 by the Rust Engineering Company and Evence Coppee et Compagnie, an engineering and construction firm based in Brussels, Belgium. Coppee-Rust was a design and construction company which specialized in assisting American businesses interested in expanding outside of the U.S. It built plants in Belgium, Iraq, Qatar, the USSR, and many other countries. The formation of Coppee-Rust represents Rust Engineering's first attempt to merge its services with those of another independent corporation.
Materials in this series have been arranged alphabetically by subsidiary or affiliate name and may include correspondence, reports, minute books, and promotional items, as well as technical information about the processes in which each subsidiary specialized.
Allegheny Industrial Electrical Company Contracts , 1946-1955 Containers box 62 , folder 6 Promotional leaflets , c1950s-1960s Containers box 62 , folder 7 Catalog of expense report sheets , 1961 Containers box 62 , folder 8 Correspondence , 1962 Containers box 62 , folder 9 Financial statements , 1965-1966 Containers box 62 , folder 10 Birmingham Clay Products Company Correspondence between S.M. Rust and Lee Rust , 1925-1938 Containers box 62 , folder 11 General Correspondence , 1921-1938 Containers box 62 , folder 12-15 "Hard Times" correspondence , 1932-1935 Containers box 63 , folder 1 Correspondence , 1936-1940 Containers box 63 , folder 2 Balance sheets , 1920-1929 Containers box 63 , folder 03-04 Cost sheets , 1921-1930 Containers box 63 , folder 05-06 U.S. Department of Justice -- brick for a chimney (#1859), Atlanta, Georgia , 1927 Containers box 63 , folder 7 Expenses , 1927 Containers box 63 , folder 8 Report: Building Brick Manufacture in the District of Birmingham, Alabama , by H. Doolittle and Stanley N. Brown, Jr. , 1928 Containers box 63 , folder 9 Statements of income, profit, and loss , 1930 Containers box 63 , folder 10 Blueprint: North Birmingham Plant of Birmingham Clay Products Co. , July 12, 1930 Containers box 63 , folder 11 W. R. Culbertson, furnace inventor , 1931-1935 Containers box 63 , folder 12 Bond holder agreement , 1933 Containers box 63 , folder 13 Indemnity and bond agreements , 1936-1939 Containers box 63 , folder 14 Audit report , 1940 Containers box 63 , folder 15 Bankruptcy and reorganization , 1940-1941 Containers box 63 , folder 16-17 Bankruptcy and reorganization , 1940-1941 Containers box 64 , folder 01-02 Balance sheet and statement of income , 1965 Containers box 64 , folder 3 Report on examination of accounts , June 30, 1965 Containers box 64 , folder 4 Reports on Examination of Financial Statements and Additional Information 1968-1976 Containers box 64 , folder 05-06 Correspondence and balance sheets , 1979 Containers box 64 , folder 7 Bolivar Clay Products Company Correspondence , 1921-1931 Containers box 64 , folder 08-09 Incoming correspondence , 1930-1931 Containers box 64 , folder 10 Property and taxes , 1921-1924 Containers box 64 , folder 11 Bolivar Clay Products Company Cumulative Preferred Stock Certificates , 1921-1946 Containers box 65 , oversize 1 Bolivar Clay Products Company Common Stock Certificates , 1921-1958 Containers box 65 , oversize 2 Coal Lease, Newport Coal Company , 1921-1924 Containers box 66 , folder 1 Blueprints and plans for Bolivar Manufacturing Plant , 1922 Containers box 66 , folder 2 Financial information , 1922-1926 Containers box 66 , folder 3 Amendments to the Certificate of Incorporation , 1932-1949 Containers box 66 , folder 4 Company reorganization , 1959 Containers box 66 , folder 5 Agreements between Bolivar and Woodbridge Clay Companies , 1959-1962 Containers box 66 , folder 6 Brick and Tile Manufacturing Company Correspondence , 1930-1931 Containers box 66 , folder 7 Proposed bylaws , 1931 Containers box 66 , folder 08-09 Incorporation and stockholder information , 1931 Containers box 66 , folder 10 Coppee-Rust Correspondence , 1961-1968 Containers box 67 , folder 01-07 Correspondence , 1966-1974 Containers box 68 , folder 01-02 Promotion Commerciale A Hasselt Containers box 68 , folder 3 Commercial Promotion in Lille Containers box 68 , folder 4 Delta Phi Fraternity -- dormitory, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA , 1963-1966 Containers box 68 , folder 05-06 Rust Engineering Company, Ltd., Great Britain , 1965 Containers box 68 , folder 7 Brochures, Rust Engineering Company, Ltd., Croydon, Surrey , c1965 Containers box 68 , folder 8 European Economic Community and Evence Coppee & Compagnie March 15, 1961 Containers box 68 , folder 9 Objective: European Expansion: A Profile of the Engineering and Construction Services of Coppee-Rust Containers box 69 , folder 1 Annual reports of Coppee-Rust and Coppee , 1973 Containers box 69 , folder 2 Annual reports of Coppee-Rust and Coppee-affiliated companies , 1976 Containers box 69 , folder 3 Social and financial reports , 1979 Containers box 69 , folder 4 Etude et Construction Evence Coppee-Rust S.A Containers box 69 , folder 5 Coppee-Rust-Damiron Group promotional book , c1963 Containers box 69 , folder 6 Coppee-Rust promotional book , c1963 Containers box 69 , volume 1 Doyle and Russell, Incorporated Financial statements , 1965, 1967 Containers box 70 , folder 1 Howard R. Wright & Associates Financial statements , 1965 Containers box 70 , folder 2 Loudon Rust Bids on school building jobs, financial reports , 1930-1931 Containers box 70 , folder 3 Mason-Rust Promotional brochure , 1950s Containers box 70 , folder 4 Penwick Distillery Company Proposed company structure , 1933 Containers box 70 , folder 5 Correspondence , 1933-1934 Containers box 70 , folder 6 Potomac Clay Products Company Incorporation and organization , 1930-1931 Containers box 70 , folder 7 Correspondence , 1930 Containers box 70 , folder 08-09 Annual reports , 1931-1937 Containers box 70 , folder 10 Blueprint: Proposed Arrangement of Machinery, Woodbridge, VA , February 17, 1937 Containers box 70 , folder 11 Blueprint: Proposed Flow Sheets , April 1930 Containers box 71 , folder 1 Waterfront property, Georgetown: acquisition and management , 1929-1941 Containers box 71 , folder 02-03 Registration in Virginia , 1930-1938 Containers box 71 , folder 4 Federal taxes , 1935 Containers box 71 , folder 5 Meeting minutes , 1936 Containers box 71 , folder 6 H.B. Rust estate settlement , 1937 Containers box 71 , folder 7 Dissolution , 1938 Containers box 71 , folder 8 Potomac Real Estate Company Correspondence , 1935 Containers box 71 , folder 9 Process Engineering Division Promotional brochures , c1950s Containers box 71 , folder 10 Rust Associates, Ltd. Financial statements , 1965 Containers box 71 , folder 11 Rust Building, Inc. Financial statements , 1965 Containers box 71 , folder 12 Lease of property , 1960s Containers box 71 , folder 13 Dissolution , 1966 Containers box 72 , folder 1 Rust Construction Company Incorporation and organization , 1927-1938 Containers box 72 , folder 02-03 Meeting minutes , 1927 Containers box 72 , folder 4 State registration , 1930-1933 Containers box 72 , folder 5 Meeting minutes and dissolution , 1934-1938 Containers box 72 , folder 6 Rust Engineering Company (Canada) Ltd. Financial statements , 1965 Containers box 72 , folder 7 Report Covering the Present and Future Power Plant Expansion Program for Ford Motor Company of Canada, Ltd. 1937 Containers box 72 , folder 8 Rust Furnace Division, Rust Furnace Company Patent Agreements , 1929 Containers box 73 , folder 1 Continuous Furnaces Promotional brochurec1930s Containers box 73 , folder 2 Division correspondence and reports on refractory purchases , 1930-1931 Containers box 73 , folder 3 Rust Engineering vs. Chapman-Stein Corporation, patent infringement on soaking pit design , c1930 Containers box 73 , folder 04-05 Patent infringement on furnace design , 1932-1935 Containers box 73 , folder 06-07 Blueprints: Details of Brick Shapes, Rust Zone Controlled Triple Fired Continuous Recuperative Slab Reheating Furnace for Ford Co. , 1934 Containers box 73 , folder 8 Profits and losses , 1936 Containers box 73 , folder 9 Correspondence , 1940-1943 Containers box 73 , folder 10 Wartime salary regulations , 1943-1945 Containers box 73 , folder 11-13 Promotional booklet , 1944 Containers box 73 , folder 14 Rust Furnace vs. Loftus Engineering, patent infringement on furnace design , 1947 Containers box 73 , folder 15 Rust Furnace Company: Pioneers in Furnace Design promotional brochurec1955 Containers box 74 , folder 1 Financial statements , 1956-1966 Containers box 74 , folder 02-04 Brochures and photographs , 1968 Containers box 74 , folder 5 Rust-Escher Hollow Fin Metallic Recuperators promotional brochurec1960s Containers box 74 , folder 6 Rust Gunite Company Correspondence and expense reports , 1930 Containers box 74 , folder 7 Rust International Corporation Promotional brochure , c1980 Containers box 74 , folder 8 Rust Properties Financial statements , 1964-1969 Containers box 74 , folder 09-10 Dissolution , 1969-1970 Containers box 74 , folder 11 Vibroflotation Foundation Company Promotional brochures , c1955 Containers box 74 , folder 12 Financial statements , 1965-1966 Containers box 74 , folder 13 Woodbridge Clay Products Company Production and average cost of manufacturing brick , 1939-1946 Containers box 74 , folder 14 Series VIII. Publicity , 1920-1989 Scope and Content Notes Series VIII consists of published newspaper and journal articles, advertisements, and booklets that represent the public face of Rust Engineering. Aimed at a wide audience of clients and the general public, they explain the services the company was capable of providing and describe some of its major successes. This series has been divided into two subseries, one for articles, and another for promotional items distributed by Rust.
Subseries 1. Articles and Newspaper Clippings , 1942-1954 Scope and Content Notes Articles about Rust Engineering's projects and officers often appeared in the news. In order to keep track of what was published and how many people it reached, the company hired professional clipping services to collect articles from newspapers and trade journals. These were added to scrapbooks alongside copies of press releases and advertisements, and each article's circulation was recorded.
Most articles announce contracts or describe successfully completed projects, often stressing the company's speed and utilization of current technology. Since there are very few files from the 1950s, these articles are the best source of information about the Rust Engineering's activity during that time. Paper mills, furnaces, and large plants were still the most common assignments, but there is also mention of the company's involvement with nuclear technology, including the construction of a massive spherical structure to house an atomic submarine's reactor during tests. Loose clippings and articles have also been included in this subseries.
Clipping Book , December 15, 1941-February 1, 1942 Containers box 75 , folder 1 Clipping Book , March-April 1942 Containers box 75 , folder 2 Clipping Book , July-August 1942 Containers box 75 , folder 3 Clipping Book , September-October 1942 Containers box 75 , folder 4 Clipping Book , October-December 1944 Containers box 75 , folder 5 Clipping Book , January-December 1946 Containers box 75 , folder 6 Clipping Book , January-December 1948 Containers box 76 , folder 01-04 Clipping Book , January-September 1949 Containers box 76 , folder 05-07 Clipping Book , October-December 1949 Containers box 77 , folder 1 Clipping Book , January-December 1950 Containers box 77 , folder 02-05 Clipping Book , January-September 1952 Containers box 77 , folder 06-08 Clipping Book , November 1952-March 1953 Containers box 78 , folder 1 Clipping Book , January-June 1954 Containers box 78 , folder 02-03 Clippings , 1930s Containers box 78 , folder 4 Clippings , 1940s Containers box 78 , folder 5 Articles sent to Newspapers and Trade Journals , 1942-1957 Containers box 78 , folder 06-10 Articles sent to Newspapers and Trade Journals , 1965-1966 Containers box 78 , folder 11 Paper Mill Articles , 1950-1958 Containers box 78 , folder 12 Fortune articlesAugust 1960 Containers box 78 , folder 13 Contract Announcements , 1942 Containers box 78 , folder 14 Subseries 2. Promotional Items , 1920-1989 Scope and Content Notes Rust Engineering published brochures and booklets for distribution to potential clients. They explain the company's services and experience and are often illustrated with diagrams and photographs of successful projects. This subseries contains examples of items that promote the company as a whole, but similar brochures for specific subsidiaries, such as the Rust Furnace Company, can be found in Series VII.
General Construction c1920s Containers box 79 , folder 1 Chimneys for All Purposes c1920s Containers box 79 , folder 2 Chimney brochures , 1938-1958 Containers box 79 , folder 3 Promotional leaflets for radial brick, waterproofing, gunite application, and other services , c1935 Containers box 79 , folder 4 The Rust Engineering Company and the Rust Furnace Company 1944 Containers box 79 , folder 5 The Rust Engineering Company and Subsidiary Companies c1954 Containers box 79 , folder 6 The Rust Engineering Company: Engineers and Constructors for the Pulp and Paper Industry 1954 Containers box 79 , folder 7 Promotional booklet for Birmingham Office , 1954 Containers box 79 , folder 8 The Rust Engineering Company and Subsidiary Companies c1956 Containers box 79 , folder 9 Experience Record of the Rust Engineering Company c1960 Containers box 79 , folder 10 Promotional booklet for Birmingham Office , 1961 Containers box 79 , folder 11 Series of booklets on engineering, design, power plants, and steel mills , c1963 Containers box 79 , folder 12 Promotional booklet , c1975 Containers box 79 , folder 13 Promotional packet on construction, model building, and aerospace work , c1989 Containers box 79 , folder 14 Rust Promotional Calendars , 1944-1956 Containers box 43.2 , oversize 02-12 Industrial and Public Utility Engineering Projects Recently Executed by the Rust Engineering Company, Inc. 1930 Industrial and Public Utility Engineering Projects Recently Executed by the Rust Engineering Company, Inc. 1938 Series IX. Photographs , 1914-1967 Scope and Content Notes This series contains over 400 prints and negatives depicting Rust Engineering's construction sites, offices, personnel, and events such as banquets and recognition ceremonies. The majority of the photographs had been housed in three albums, two containing images of job sites and machinery from the 1920s through the 1950s, and one documenting the construction of coke processing facilities and blast furnaces for Central Iron and Coal Company in Holt, Alabama, between 1917 and 1918. The Holt album covers many stages of the large project and also includes rare images of the working conditions and the surrounding town. "Before and after" images, found in all albums, follow progress at construction sites and show the types of tools, scaffolding, and underlying foundations used to build a variety of structures.
Many of the loose photographs appear to have been taken for publication, either in Rust's advertising brochures and leaflets or for the Rust Triangle newsletter. Please note that some photographs are stamped with the name of a photographer or studio. They remain the intellectual property of the creator and cannot be reproduced without permission.
Digital reproductions of the collection are available online .
Subseries 1. Job Album 1 Framework for "Rutherfords job" (Job #6059), Grammercy, LA , June 8, 1950 Containers box 80 , folder 1 Boilers, Consolidated Gas Co. Hunts Point, NY Containers box 80 , folder 2 Coke plant, Koppers Seaboard Coke Company, Brooklyn, NY Containers box 80 , folder 3 Construction work on a plant for International Cement, Washington, D.C. , c1925 Containers box 80 , folder 4 Gunite work and bridge construction for the Pennsylvania RR. Co., Hunts Point, NY (Job #2114) Containers box 80 , folder 5 Gunite work, Riverside Drive, NYC (Job #1870) , December, 1927-1928, July 8, 1927 Containers box 80 , folder 6 Monitor ends for Chevrolet Plant, Atlanta, GA (Job #1978) , March 1928 Containers box 80 , folder 7 Completed bridge for the New Jersey Highway Commission , 1966 Containers box 80 , folder 8 Steam engine and completed floor system of New York Ave. Bridge, Washington, D.C. , October 1931 Containers box 80 , folder 9 Ordnance Department, Picatinny Arsenal Packing House, M-4344 , March 23, 1932 Containers box 80 , folder 10 Completed Route 30 Bridge for the D.L and W.R.R. , April 25, 1932 Containers box 80 , folder 11 Workers applying concrete to a nine foot wind tunnel for the Georgia School of Technology, Atlanta, GA , May 1930 Containers box 80 , folder 12 Installation of three Springfield Boilers for Consolidated Gas Co., Hunts Point, NY , c1925 Containers box 80 , folder 13 Completed bridge for L.V. RR Co. and Essex County Park Commission, Newark, N.J. (Job #2778-2779) , October 10, 1932 Containers box 80 , folder 14 Before and after shots of Geary Boiler installation for Pittsburgh and West Virginia Gas Co., Downs, W.V. , c1925 Containers box 80 , folder 15 Domestic screening plant for Koppers Seaboard Coke Co., Kearney, N.J. Containers box 80 , folder 16 Construction of Lake Street Bridge, Ashtabula, Ohio (Job #2088) , October 31, 1928 Containers box 80 , folder 17 Workers applying gunite to a fur vault for Joseph Horne Warehouse, Pittsburgh, PA , March 17, 1928 Containers box 80 , folder 18 Load test for chimney bearing (Job #1692) , July 4, 1925 Containers box 80 , folder 19 Completed boilers, location unknown Containers box 80 , folder 20 Boiler installation, location unknown , c1925 Containers box 80 , folder 21 Monitor ends for Chevrolet plant, Atlanta, G.A. (Job #1978) Containers box 80 , folder 22 Coal silo for Utica Gas and Electric Co., Utica, NY , c1925 Containers box 80 , folder 23 Construction and brickwork in an unknown building , July 19, 1924 Containers box 80 , folder 24 Bridge walls for Metropolitan Power Co., Middletown, PA. , 1926 Containers box 80 , folder 25 Tangentially fired burner for Ford, Walkerville, Ontario Containers box 80 , folder 26 Completed boiler installation for Penn. American Refining Co., Oil City, PA , c1925 Containers box 80 , folder 27 Boiler installation, location unknown Containers box 80 , folder 28 Interior shot of unknown building, Binghamton, NY Containers box 80 , folder 29 Super-power station for Ohio River Edison Company, Toronto, Ohio , January 17, 1925 Containers box 80 , folder 30 Interior brickwork, location unknown , c1925 Containers box 80 , folder 31 Garbage incinerator, Garden City, NY Containers box 80 , folder 32 Building and power plant for Ford Motor Company (Job #1347) , 1924 Containers box 80 , folder 33 Workers building 75th Street Bridge over Village Creek , November 1931 Containers box 80 , folder 34 Pennsylvania State Highway Bridge at Groveton, Pa , 1929 Containers box 80 , folder 35 Subseries 2. Job Album 2 Chimneys, stills, plants, and other work for Pennzoil Co., Oil City, Pa (Job #1728, 1777) , 1926 Containers box 81 , folder 1 Gunite work on a bridge for New Jersey State Highway Commission, Newark, NJ (Job #1966) , January 4-December 16, 1927 Containers box 81 , folder 2 Overpass bridge for New Jersey State Highway Commission (Job #2233) , March 19, 1929 Containers box 81 , folder 3 Exterior shot of building for Aracoma Laundry Company, Logan, WV Containers box 81 , folder 4 Garage and car showroom for Dawley Motor Company , c1925 Containers box 81 , folder 5 Coke and coal bins for Northern Indiana Gas and Electric Co., Fort Wayne, Indiana Containers box 81 , folder 6 Construction of a nine foot wind tunnel for Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA , May 1931 Containers box 81 , folder 7 Workers building Brighton Road and W. North Ave. Bridge, Pittsburgh, PA Containers box 81 , folder 8 Overlooking town and construction of Winchester Ave. Overpass, Ashland, KY , September 14, 1932 Containers box 81 , folder 9 Workers and cranes, construction of D.L & W. R.R. Main Line, Washington, NJ (Job #2766) , June-December, 1931 Containers box 81 , folder 10 Completed gunite power house for Phoenix Utility Company , Phoenix, AZ (Job #2405)February 14, 1930 Containers box 81 , folder 11 Floor system of New York Ave. Bridge, Washington, D.C. , October, 1931 Containers box 81 , folder 12 Lake Street Bridge, Ashtebula, Ohio (Job #2088) , November 1, 1928 Containers box 81 , folder 13 Gunite repair to Q. Street Bridge, Washington, D.C. (Job #2863) , August 31, 1932 Containers box 81 , folder 14 New Philadelphia, O.3" reinforced gunite lining (Job #2765) , October 19, 1931 Containers box 81 , folder 15 Gunite application, Payson Park Reservoir, Cambridge, MA (Job #1838) , September 8, 1927 Containers box 81 , folder 16 Ordnance Department Picatinny Arsenal, Cannon powder blender M-4245 , 1929 Containers box 81 , folder 17 Construction of Bell Telephone Company Building addition, Pittsburgh, PA , 1929 Containers box 81 , folder 18 Gunite application, location unknown , February 21, 1928 Containers box 81 , folder 19 Chevropet Plant Containers box 81 , folder 20 Niagara Street Bridge for NJ State Highway Commission, Newark, NJ , 1927 Containers box 81 , folder 21 Bridge, location unknown , August 8, 1928 Containers box 81 , folder 22 P. RR bridge, Arcade, NY , October, 1929 Containers box 81 , folder 23 Exterior and office shots of an assembly plant for Ford Motor Company, Chester, PA , 1927 Containers box 81 , folder 24 Subseries 3. Banquet Photos Veteran Employee's Dinner , October 25, 1946 Containers box 81 , folder 25 Founders Day and Service Award Dinner, University Club, Pittsburgh , October 27, 1950 Containers box 82 , folder 1 Service Award Banquet commemorating the company's fiftieth anniversary, Hotel William Penn, Pittsburgh, PA , October 19, 1955 Containers box 82 , folder 2 Sixtieth Anniversary and Fifth Service Banquet, Hotel Webster Hall, Pittsburgh, PA and Parliament House, Birmingham, AL , November 11, 1965, December 7, 1965 Containers box 82 , folder 3 Banquet booklets , 1950-1955 Containers box 82 , folder 4 General banquet information , 1964-1965 Containers box 82 , folder 5 Quarter Century Club , 1985-1995 Containers box 82 , folder 6 Subseries 4. Miscellaneous Photos Rust Boiler Shop , 1905 Containers box 82 , folder 7 Extension to the government printing office, Washington, D.C. , September 3, 1929 Containers box 82 , folder 8 Building and bricklayers in a building, location unknown , May 8, 1929 Containers box 82 , folder 9 Office building for National Gas Co., Clarksburg, WV , May 8, 1929 Containers box 82 , folder 10 Shots of employees in the first Pittsburgh office, located in the Farmers Bank Building , 1917 Containers box 82 , folder 11 Boston Office building, Boston, MA , 1956 Containers box 82 , folder 12 S.M. Rust and Coppee-Rust officers , August 13, 1964 Containers box 82 , folder 13 Rust Engineering Award for high school students , March 28, 1950 Containers box 83 , folder 1 Unidentified building and train tracks , July 21, 1950 Containers box 83 , folder 2 Unknown plant , October 25, 1950 Containers box 83 , folder 3 Banquet at University Club , October 30, 1950 Containers box 83 , folder 4 Photo of a drawing of a warehouse and office building for Kroger Company, Pittsburgh, PA , March 23, 1951 Containers box 83 , folder 5 Brickwork , July 11, 1951 Containers box 83 , folder 6 Interior and exterior shots, J&L plant, Hazelwood , October 22, 1951 Containers box 83 , folder 7 J&L Aliquippa , October 24, 1951 Containers box 83 , folder 8 Hubbard Aluminum Products Co. building , November 9, 1951 Containers box 83 , folder 9 Two men at desk in Rust building at Sixth Ave. and Diamond, Pittsburgh, PA , August 15, 1952 Containers box 83 , folder 10 Rust building at Sixth Ave. and Diamond , March 25, 1952 Containers box 83 , folder 11 Rust building at Sixth Ave. and Diamond , April 2, 1952 Containers box 83 , folder 12 Retouched image of Rust building at Sixth Ave. and Diamond , May 27, 1942 Containers box 83 , folder 13 Ceremony for winners of the Rust Technology Award, Duquesne Club, Pittsburgh, PA , February 1929, 1956 Containers box 83 , folder 14 Rust Technology Award, winning drawings , March 2, 1957 Containers box 83 , folder 15 Man instructing a small group about materials , February 12, 1958 Containers box 83 , folder 16 Unloading equipment from flatcase, interior of warehouse at Allegheny Industrial Electrical , March 31, 1959 Containers box 83 , folder 17 Student Architect Awards ceremony , May 28, 1958 Containers box 83 , folder 18 Children playing games and group shots at Rust company picnic, North Park, Pittsburgh, PA , July 23, 1958 Containers box 83 , folder 19 Junior Achievement Awards ceremony , December 17, 1958 Containers box 83 , folder 20 Airplane and hanger at Allegheny Airport , December 15, 1958 Containers box 83 , folder 21 Architectural award ceremony , May 20, 1959 Containers box 83 , folder 22 Science Awards ceremony at Kaufmanns, Pittsburgh, PA , May 21, 1959 Containers box 83 , folder 23 Company plane and pilot, Allegheny County Airport , June 30, 1960 Containers box 83 , folder 24 Anniversary Party, Webster Hall , October 19, 1960 Containers box 83 , folder 25 President S.M. Rust, Jr. in office , June 15, 1961 Containers box 83 , folder 26 Company jet at Allegheny Airport , July 19, 1968 Containers box 83 , folder 27 Scale model of a structure Containers box 83 , folder 28 Winning 3D model by Carnegie Tech students , March 25, 1957 Containers box 83 , folder 29 Paul Scheetz, engineers, and draftsmen in the Drawing Room of the Heeran Building , 1948 Containers box 83 , folder 30 Three Sisters Bridges and Fort Wayne Railroad Bridge in snow, taken from Rust office , March 3, 1960 Containers box 83 , folder 31 Boiler on cart , c1920 Chimney for Seaboard By-Product Co., Jersey City, NY , c1920 Chimneys for Firestone Tire and Rubber Co., Akron, Ohio , c1920 Chimney for Midland Coke Ovens , c1920 Stack, Lehigh, PA , c1920 Eggners Ferry Bridge being raised, Murray, KY , c1943 Containers box 83 , item 06-07 Monitor on roof at Evanston Containers box 83 , item 08-09 Boiler brickwork for 10 Franklin boilers, Charleston Con. Ry. Light and Power Co., Charleston, SC , 1911 Containers box 83 , item 10-11 Cartoons and caricatures of Rust personnel (negatives) , c1960 Photo Album of projects for Central Iron and Coal Company, Holt Alabama , 1917-1918 Subseries 5. New Materials Added , 1915-1968 Alabama Industries Week Displays , 1959-1960 Containers box 85 , folder 1 A.M. Woodall Profile , undated Containers box 85 , folder 2 Boston Office (exterior and interior) , undated Containers box 85 , folder 3 Birmingham Clay Products Company , undated Containers box 85 , folder 4 Birmingham Office Library , 1957 Containers box 85 , folder 5 Birmingham Office Photos , undated Containers box 85 , folder 6 Blood Drive , Janurary, 1959 Containers box 85 , folder 7 Chimney Department, Pittsburgh Office , 1964 Containers box 85 , folder 8 Company Library in Birmingham , undated Containers box 85 , folder 9 Computers, Birmingham and Pittsburgh Offices , 1961 Containers box 85 , folder 10 Delivery of Beechcraft Super 18 Airplane , July 1959 Containers box 85 , folder 11 Ford Motor Co. Pump House Construction , June 1926 Containers box 85 , folder 12 Group Photos, persons named , undated Containers box 85 , folder 13 Group Photos, persons unnamed , undated Containers box 85 , folder 14 James L. Shaunessy Retirement Dinner , 1961 Containers box 85 , folder 15 Jobs , 1915-1916 Containers box 85 , folder 16 Junior Achievement Program (Birmingham) , 1958-1959 Containers box 85 , folder 17 Lloyd Belcher Receiving Check , undated Containers box 85 , folder 18 L.S. Barker Receiving Check , 1960 Containers box 85 , folder 19 Peddie Ditch Bridge Job , undated Containers box 85 , folder 20 Pesonnel Assigned to Expansion of Paper Mill , 1963 Containers box 85 , folder 21 Photo Caption without image , 1959 Containers box 85 , folder 22 Pomeroy Chemical Co. Plant Construction , October 1918 Containers box 85 , folder 23 Portraits (8x10) , 1959 Containers box 85 , folder 24 Portraits (5x3.5) , undated Containers box 85 , folder 25 R.D. Spellman Dinner , February 1960 Containers box 85 , folder 26 Receptionists Operating Telephone Switchboards , undated Containers box 85 , folder 27 Republic Bank Note Company Office Construction , May 1927 Containers box 85 , folder 28 Rust Triangle Photos , 1961-1963 Containers box 85 , folder 29 Scale Model of Southwest Forest Industries Co. Paper Mill , undated Containers box 85 , folder 30 Third Annual Meeting of Sales Department , November 15-16, 1968 Containers box 85 , folder 31 Tommie Burleson Receiveing 10-Year Pen , June 1960 Containers box 85 , folder 32 Series X. New Materials Added , 1915-1989 Scope and Contents Additions to the Rust Engineering Company Records contains a variety of records that primarily pertains to Rust's office in Birmingham, Alabama, including correspondence, promotional materials, and employee handbooks. Also includes some materials from various divisions of the company and other locations.
Air and Water Pollution Prevention and Control, Informational Brochure , c1970s-1980s Containers box 86 , folder 1 Birmingham Office Informational Handbook , 1961 Containers box 86 , folder 2 Cement Production Plan Construction, Promotional Brochure , c1970 Containers box 86 , folder 3 Chemical Plant Construction, Promotional Material , c1953 Containers box 86 , folder 4 Chimney Division, Promotional Material , c1958-1980s Containers box 86 , folder 5 Company Morale Report , c1950s-1960s Containers box 86 , folder 6 Coppee-Rust, Materials related to merger , 1973 Containers box 86 , folder 7 Doyle and Russell, Introductory Handbook to the Company , c1980s Containers box 86 , folder 8 Employee Handbook , 1963 Containers box 86 , folder 9 Financial Statements , 1965 Containers box 86 , folder 10 Founder's Day and Service Award Dinner Program , 1950 Containers box 86 , folder 11 Industrial Health Council Informational Pamphlet , 1959 Containers box 86 , folder 12 Opening of Birmingham Office , 1966-1967 Containers box 86 , folder 13 Organizational Charts , 1970 Containers box 86 , folder 14 Paper Mill Construction, Promotional Materials , c1950s-1970s Containers box 86 , folder 15 Paper Mill Construction, Procedure Plan , 1938 Containers box 86 , folder 16 Pittsburgh Office, mailers announcing move , 1956 Containers box 86 , folder 17 Promotional Brochures (various) , c1960s-1980s Containers box 86 , folder 18 Qualifications and Services Booklet for Doyle and Russell , c1950 Containers box 86 , folder 19 Rust Construction (Newsletter) , 1969-1971 Containers box 87 , folder 1 Rust Furnace Company, Financial Reports , 1965-1966 Containers box 87 , folder 2 Rust Furnace Company, Promotional Material , c1970s-1980s Containers box 87 , folder 3 Rust International, Promotional Material , c1970s-1980s Containers box 87 , folder 4 Saks, Claude M.--Thesis, "An American Eng...." (Duquesne University) , 1967 Containers box 87 , folder 5 S.M. Rust Jr., Correspondence regarding Doyle and Russell , 1962-1969 Containers box 87 , folder 6 Steam Power Division, Promotional Material , c1955 Containers box 87 , folder 7 Steel Division, Promotional Material and Handbooks , c1950s-1960s Containers box 87 , folder 8 The Parkersburg Sentinel , July 17, 1936 Containers box 87 , folder 9 Triangle (Newsletter) , 1967-1973 Containers box 87 , folder 10 Vibroflotation Division, Promotional Material , c1970s-1980s Containers box 87 , folder 11 
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