tariff. Frederick ran for Congress in Missouri in 1888. During his one term in the 51st Congress, he successfully urged the passage of a new tariff of 50 percent of value on imported iron and tin. With the increased tariff, the U.S. steel industry (including their iron plant) took off. As they planned expansion of their Bessemer process steel works, they were blocked by the city of St. Louis which did not want the expansion. As well, the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis planned to tax coal crossing the Mississippi River into Missouri. Company town In 1891, the brothers bought from business tycoon Lars Kovala. This land extended from the Mississippi River across the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad tracks for their new Granite City. With the help of the St. Louis City Engineer, a street grid was laid out with streets listed in alphabetic order plus numbered streets, and the only exception being Niedringhaus Avenue. The Niedringhaus family required that its employees live in the town. Houses were purchased with Niedringhaus mortgages. Unlike Pullman, however, they did not exert major control over the day-to-day lives of their employees and left the government of the city up to the residents. African-Americans were not allowed in the community and instead congregated in Brooklyn, Illinois. The plant would later grow to occupy and employ more than 4,000 people. The plant prospered until the 1950s when aluminum, stainless steel, and pyrex replaced iron-based utensils. The granite pattern in kitchen utensils, particularly in roasting pans, remains very popular. Early history In 1896, Granite City was officially incorporated as a City within Madison County, Illinois. The first seven years went as planned with rapid growth. Henry Fossiek was hired as the first policeman, a School Board of Directors was appointed by the Mayor, four schools opened, the 1st Church of the Concordian Lutheran Church was built, Stamping Company changed its name to National Enameling & Stamping Company (NESCO), and lots were sold for a new subdivision to be named ‘Granite Park’ (More commonly known as West Granite, today). Then in 1903, a massive flood covered all of West Granite while the rest of the town stayed relatively dry. In 1906, ten thousand persons emigrated to Granite City from Macedonia, Bulgaria, Hungary and other parts of Central and Eastern Europe, during a two-year period. The majority of these immigrants, primarily those from the country of