Kelly had a prior claim; in spite of this, Bessemer was
undoubtedly the man who developed the mechanical details and gave
the process a universal standing.

Though the Bessemer process made possible the production of steel
by tons instead of by pounds, it would never in itself have given
the nation its present preeminence in the steel industry. Iron
had been mined in the United States for two centuries on a small
scale, the main deposits being located in the Lake Champlain
region of New York and in western Pennsylvania. But these, and a
hundred other places located along the Atlantic coast, could not
have produced ore in quantities sufficient to satisfy the yawning
jaws of the Bessemer converters. As this new method poured out
the liquid in thousands of tons, and as the commercial demand
extended in a dozen different directions, the cry went up from
the furnace's for more ore. And again Nature, which has favored
America in so many directions, came to her assistance.
Manufacturers in the steel regions began to recall strange
stories which had been floating down for many years from the
wilderness surrounding Lake Superior. The recollection of a
famous voyage made in this region by Philo M. Everett, as far
back as 1845, now laid siege to the imagination of the new
generation of ironmasters. For years the Indians had told Everett
of the "mountains of iron" that lay on the Minnesota shore of
Lake Superior and had described their wonders in words that
finally impelled this hardy adventurer to make a voyage of
exploration. For six weeks, in company with two Indian guides,
Everett had navigated a small boat along the shores of the Lake,
covering a distance that now takes only a few hours. The Indians
had long regarded this silent, red iron region with a