Canonsburg in Washington County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Vitro Rare Metals Company/Standard Chemical-Radioactive Legacy

Photographed by Bradley Owen, February 27, 2026

1. Vitro Rare Metals Company/Standard Chemical-Radioactive Legacy Marker

Inscription.
Near this site was a mill that processed radium, uranium, and other ores between 1911 and 1957. It was one of the world's largest producers of radium and one of the earliest in the nuclear industry. Nobel Laureate Marie Curie toured the site in 1921. In the 1940s, it was part of the secret Manhattan Project and supplied purified uranium to the US Government for the war effort. The site and the surrounding areas were surveyed for radioactive materials, remediated, and the radioactive waste encapsulated here in 1985.

Donated by Ralph J. Reda, nuclear scientist and in memory of Tony and Jean (Bond) DeLost

Erected 2023 by Jefferson College Historical Society and Ralph J. Reda.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Environment • Industry & Commerce • Science & Medicine. In addition, it is included in the Pennsylvania, Jefferson College Historical Society series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1911.

Location. 40° 15.316′ N, 80° 11.88′ W. Marker is in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, in Washington County. It is on Strabane Avenue north of Chartiers Street, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Strabane Avenue, Canonsburg PA 15317, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Pittsburgh.

It is also in the American Northeast,

in the Mid-Atlantic,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy

and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers.

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At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Canonsburg Disposal Site (a few steps from this marker); Veterans Memorial (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); World War II Memorial (about 500 feet away); United States Colored Troops Monument (about 700 feet away); Payne Chapel AME Church and Cemetery (approx. 0.2 miles away); Don Yenko - Yenko Chevrolet (approx. 0.3 miles away); 121 Belmont Avenue (approx. 0.4 miles away); Budke House (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Canonsburg.

Photographed by Bradley Owen, February 27, 2026

2. Vitro Rare Metals Company/Standard Chemical-Radioactive Legacy Marker

View is looking north. The site of the contained radioactive materials is beyond the fencing off to the left.

Credits. This page was last revised on March 9, 2026. It was originally submitted on March 9, 2026, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. This page has been viewed 41 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 9, 2026, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia.