To celebrate the 150th anniversary of Joseph T. Ryerson & Son Inc., the largest metals distribution company in the United States, an open house and barbecue will be held Thursday, June 18, from 3-7 p.m. at the company's facility in the Freeport Center.
F. David Shrives, general manager, said the celebration is for customers, employees and their families and also will note the construction of new office space and remodeling of old space in the 120,000-square-foot distribution center, called the Salt Lake City Service Center.Ryerson acquired the old Metra Steel facility in 1990 and currently has 20 employees who ship metal products to all parts of Utah and eastern Idaho. Previously, the Salt Lake area was serviced from the Denver Service Center.
The company operates facilities in 30 major cities and offers a full line of materials to manufacturers including carbon and alloy steel, stainless steel, nickel alloys, aluminum, copper, brass and a broad range of industrial plastics, which come in a variety of shapes, sizes and grades.
Ryerson was founded in 1842 when Joseph T. Ryerson started a small Chicago iron store to provide blacksmiths and boilermakers with better service and quality products. Ryerson merged with Chicago-based Inland Steel Industries Inc. in 1935 and now is part of the Inland Materials Distribution Group Inc.