Benjamin Fairless, BSCE, Hon.D. '35, lived a remarkable rags to riches story. Born into poverty, he became president of U.S. Steel, playing a critical role in industrial steel production during World War II.
He was born the son of a coal miner. His father struggled to keep food on the table and sent Ben to live with his aunt and uncle. The couple eventually adopted him and he assumed their last name.
Fairless worked as an attendant in an insane asylum to help pay for his ONU education. Graduating with a civil engineering degree, he stumbled into an entry-level job in the steel industry. His common sense approach to problem solving propelled him to the top. He became president of U.S. Steel Corporation, the world’s largest producer of steel and iron, in 1938. He oversaw the company during World War II and the post-War period when the military and civilian need for steel exploded. From 1938 to 1952, he boosted steel production by millions of ton. He built the U.S. Steel Fairless Works mill in Pennsylvania that employed so many people it led to the creation of the Philadelphia suburb of Levittown and the town of Fairless Hills, named in his honor.
An industrial giant, Fairless appeared on the cover of Time magazine on Nov. 12, 1951. He served on the board of trustees at ONU and gave ONU’s commencement address in 1960. The University honored him with its firstOutstanding Alumni Award.