John Hoerr
Encyclopedia
John Hoerr is an American
journalist
and historian
best known for his work on organized labor, industry, and politics.
He was born in McKeesport
, Pennsylvania
, a steelmaking town in the Monongahela River Valley
south of Pittsburgh. He graduated from McKeesport High School (1948) and Penn State University (1953). During college he worked short stints in the steel works at McKeesport. Hoerr served in the U.S. Army 1953-1955 and was stationed in France
.
He began a journalistic career in 1956 with United Press International
in Newark, New Jersey
and Trenton
. Later he worked at The Daily Tribune in Royal Oak, Michigan
, rejoined UPI for two years in Chicago
, and served separate stints with Business Week, in Detroit and Pittsburgh, specializing as a labor reporter on the automobile, steel, and coal-mining industries. After five years as an on-air reporter and documentary producer at WQED
, the PBS station in Pittsburgh, he returned to Business Week in 1975 as labor editor and later senior writer on the New York staff. Since 1991, he has been a free-lance writer of nonfiction and fiction.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
best known for his work on organized labor, industry, and politics.
He was born in McKeesport
McKeesport, Pennsylvania
McKeesport is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in the United States; it is located at the confluence of the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 19,731 at the 2010 census...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, a steelmaking town in the Monongahela River Valley
Monongahela River
The Monongahela River is a river on the Allegheny Plateau in north-central West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States...
south of Pittsburgh. He graduated from McKeesport High School (1948) and Penn State University (1953). During college he worked short stints in the steel works at McKeesport. Hoerr served in the U.S. Army 1953-1955 and was stationed in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
He began a journalistic career in 1956 with United Press International
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
in Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
and Trenton
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
. Later he worked at The Daily Tribune in Royal Oak, Michigan
Royal Oak, Michigan
Royal Oak is a city in Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a suburb of Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 57,236. It should not be confused with Royal Oak Charter Township, a separate community located nearby....
, rejoined UPI for two years in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and served separate stints with Business Week, in Detroit and Pittsburgh, specializing as a labor reporter on the automobile, steel, and coal-mining industries. After five years as an on-air reporter and documentary producer at WQED
WQED (TV)
WQED is a Public Broadcasting Service member Public television station based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Established April 1, 1954, it was the first community-sponsored television station in the United States as well as the fifth public TV station...
, the PBS station in Pittsburgh, he returned to Business Week in 1975 as labor editor and later senior writer on the New York staff. Since 1991, he has been a free-lance writer of nonfiction and fiction.
Books
- And the Wolf Finally Came: The Decline of the American Steel Industry, nonfiction (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1988).
- We Can't Eat Prestige: The Women Who Organized Harvard, nonfiction (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1997).
- Harry, Tom and Father Rice: Accusation and Betrayal in America's Cold War, nonfiction (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2005).
- Monongahela Dusk, novel (Pittsburgh: Autumn House Press, 2009).