were created using Crane iron are the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels in New York City. Thomas's industry helped the small town to become quite prosperous, and he himself became a wealthy landowner. Philanthropy and honors Thomas's wealth and generosity with it endeared him to his neighbors. He and his wife, Elizabeth, were known as "the father and mother of Catasauqua", and frequently addressed as Mother and Father Thomas. A devout Presbyterian, Thomas founded the first church in the borough of Catasauqua, in which residents still worship. He installed its first public water system, founded its first fire company, and served as its first burgess. He provided a number of neat, attractive homes for his employees, many of which are still standing today. Additional accolades were presented to "Father Thomas" for his transformational ideas and vision. He was named the first president of the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers (then known as the American Society of Metallurgy), and was one of the founders of the American Association of Industrial Engineers. Death and legacy Thomas died from pneumonia in Catasauqua on June 20, 1882. He, his wife Elizabeth, and generations of their descendants are all buried in the Thomas family vault, a sort of underground mausoleum at Fairview Cemetery in West Catasauqua. The Thomas family mansion, located on Second Street in Catasauqua, is still standing, though its interior has since been divided into apartments. In 1898, Leonard Peckitt took the reins as president of the Crane Iron Company. He proceeded to purchase a number of other companies in the region, uniting them all under the incorporation of the Empire Steel and Iron Company. Though Peckitt was a shrewd businessman, he could not hide forever the fact that the 20th century brought changes to the iron industry, and that the company was beginning to lose money. The last furnace at the Crane Iron Company ceased operation in 1921; by 1935, most of the plant had been demolished, and little remains of the company's plant today. What does still exist is in the possession of the borough of Catasauqua, which is currently working to transform it into a shopping and dining destination. Sources Images of America: Catasauqua and North Catasauqua by Martha Capwell Fox (Arcadia Publishing 2002) WelshDragon.net: Historical Wales Timeline Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company Welsh Biography Online References Foundrymen British ironmasters Welsh industrialists American manufacturing businesspeople People from Swansea