The Valley of Decision

Three generations of a Pittsburgh steel family and the Irish housemaid bound to them, from the 1870s mills through the Homestead strike to the Second World War.

Why it’s on the list: Named in the historical-fiction thread, and the answer that fits @moseskagan’s brief most literally — a multi-generational novel whose engine is an industrial business.

Where I saw it: In Kyle’s “Books To Read” Apple Note, recovered from the reply thread to @moseskagan asking “What historical fiction should I read next? (Bonus points for something involving building or trade, rather than violence)” (April 13, 2025). The full recovered list lives on What historical fiction should I… (tweet).

Kyle’s line was the bare “Valley of Decision”. Read as Marcia Davenport’s 1942 Pittsburgh steel saga rather than Edith Wharton’s 1902 novel of the same name, because the thread asked specifically for building and trade. Flagged confidence: low on that reading.

Connections

• What historical fiction should I… (tweet) — the thread this came out of; the full recovered list lives there.
• Manufacturing — the Pittsburgh steel industry is the setting.