[3] In 1881 the company built Central Furnaces plant, near the Cuyahoga River, for the production of pig iron.
[3] In May 1882 the mill was faced with a strike from its skilled workers, mostly of British origin, in response to disregard by the company to union demands.
[4] In June 1885 a larger and more violent strike occurred, this time led by Polish and Czech workers in response to wage cuts.
The violent tactics used by the strikers made the union unable to sustain support by the English-speaking skilled workers, who eventually returned to work in September.
To prevent further riots by the unskilled workers, Mayor George Gardner ordered the company's president (William Chisholm, the oldest son of Henry Chisholm) to revert the wage cuts, which ended the strike, although many of the striking workers were denied their jobs back.