New book by Joel Ross and Leeanne Seaver follows four generations of entrepreneurship, innovation, and family leadership
PITTSBURGH, PA — A LEGACY: 100 Years in the Life of a Successful Family Business, written by Joel Ross and Leeanne Seaver, is being released September 22, bringing to life the century-long story of a Western Pennsylvania family whose small business roots grew into an international enterprise.
At its core, A LEGACY is the story of Pittsburgh entrepreneurship.
Beginning with the Ross family’s early years in the Allegheny Mountains and Western Pennsylvania, the book follows four generations as they build, adapt, and ultimately expand a family business across dramatically changing economic and technological eras. Along the way, the family confronts the Great Depression, shifts in American industry, periods of uncertainty, succession from one generation to the next, and the unique pressures that come with sustaining a family-owned company over time.
Running through that history are values closely associated with Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania: perseverance, resourcefulness, loyalty, hard work, and a belief in creating something that can endure beyond any one individual.
A LEGACY chronicles the growth of the family business that became Universal Electric Corporation, known for its Starline power distribution systems. From its beginnings as a regional electrical enterprise, the company evolved as technology reshaped the world around it. The rise of computers, telecommunications, the internet, and data centers created new opportunities, ultimately positioning the company within the infrastructure supporting the modern digital economy.
Yet the book is not simply a corporate history.
A LEGACY examines the larger questions facing families who hope to pass a successful enterprise from one generation to the next. How are values transferred along with ownership? How can a company modernize without losing the culture that helped create it? How does each generation earn the opportunity to lead? And how can a family avoid the familiar “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations” pattern that has challenged family businesses for centuries?
Using family history, company records, firsthand memories, and personal reflections, Joel Ross and Leeanne Seaver present a story that reaches beyond one family or one company. The book offers a broader exploration of entrepreneurship, leadership, succession, stewardship, and the responsibilities that accompany long-term success.
For Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania readers, the story also reflects the evolution of the region itself.
Pittsburgh has long been known as a place where people make, build, invent, and reinvent. The Ross family’s journey spans the region’s industrial heritage and its transformation into an economy increasingly connected to technology, innovation, and advanced infrastructure. In that sense, the history told in A LEGACY parallels Pittsburgh’s own ability to change with the times while maintaining a strong connection to its identity.
“Pittsburgh has always been a city where people build things meant to last,” said Joel Ross. “Our family story is very much part of that tradition. This book is about the people who came before us, the values they passed down, and the responsibility each generation has to leave something meaningful for the next.”
While deeply personal, A LEGACY is also intended for entrepreneurs, business leaders, family enterprises, and readers interested in what it takes to create an organization capable of surviving—and succeeding—across generations.
A LEGACY: 100 Years in the Life of a Successful Family Business is available beginning September 22, 2026, through major booksellers and online retailers.
About the Authors
Joel Ross is a fourth-generation member of the Ross family and former leader of Universal Electric Corporation. His career has been defined by entrepreneurship, business leadership, innovation, and the stewardship of a multigenerational family enterprise.
Leeanne Seaver is a writer and collaborator who worked closely with the Ross family to document and shape the century-long story presented in A LEGACY, bringing together family history, business milestones, personal reflections, and lessons learned across generations.
About A LEGACY
A LEGACY: 100 Years in the Life of a Successful Family Business chronicles four generations of the Ross family and the evolution of their business from a small Western Pennsylvania enterprise into an international company. Through stories of entrepreneurship, leadership, succession, innovation, and family, the book examines what it takes to build a company—and a legacy—designed to endure.
