Edwin H. Gott, Former Chairman of U.S. Steel, Dies in Pittsburgh at 78

Edwin H. Gott, the son of a British coal miner who rose through the ranks to become chairman and chief executive officer of U.S. Steel Corp., now USX Corp., died Wednesday at his Pittsburgh home. He was 78.

Gott served as chairman and CEO of U.S. Steel from 1967 until 1973.

Gott graduated from Lehigh University and joined U.S. Steel in 1937 as an industrial engineer at its Ohio Works in Youngstown. He served in a number of positions with the company until he was named chairman and CEO after the retirement of Roger Blough, the controversial chairman who finally yielded to President John F. Kennedy in 1962 when U.S. Steel fought for a $6-a-ton increase in steel prices.

Gott retired from U.S. Steel at age 65 in February, 1973, but he remained on the board of directors and the executive and finance committees before retiring from those positions in May, 1980.