Allegheny Township’s Bob Key, accomplished attorney and businessman, was avid pilot who bred champion horses
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Bob Key was no stranger to travel and adventure.
His pursuits took him to six continents, but he always returned to his hometown roots in the Alle-Kiski Valley.
Robert “Bob” J. Key died at his home in Allegheny Township on Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021. He was 87.
Up until his death, Key continued working several hours a day as president of Allegheny Township-based Key Bellevilles Inc., the company he founded in 1967 that specializes in designing, manufacturing and distributing belleville disc springs.
Key grew up in the Valley Heights section of New Kensington, where his preferred mode of transportation around the neighborhood was his horse, Baxter.
He displayed entrepreneurial skills as a teen, setting trap lines along the Allegheny River and selling the skins of muskrats, foxes and mink.
“He was a homeboy and loved New Ken and was a lifelong Pittsburgher,” said his widow, Patty Key.
Key was of Slovak and German heritage and graduated from the former New Kensington High School.
He graduated summa cum laude a year ahead of schedule with a law degree from Dickinson College in 1957.
“He was an attorney first, businessman second and pilot third,” Patty Key said.
“He was hard to follow because his shadow was long,” said son Rob Key, 54, of New York City. “He was for me always an anchor. He would always tell me, ‘Be first in and last out.’ ”
Key practiced law for more than 50 years through his private New Kensington practice until devoting his time entirely to running his company.
Key Bellevilles is the largest belleville manufacturer in the world with customers in 67 countries.
A pilot lesson in 1964 introduced Key to flying, and he earned his private pilot’s license with instrument ratings.
He frequently flew his own Cessna 210 across the country, personally visiting companies in search of customers.
Patty Key said memorable holidays with her pilot husband included trips to the Bahamas, Alaska and Puerto Rico.
“He inspired me to get my pilot’s license,” Patty Key said. “Piloting was fun for him, and he could get his mind off of work and relax.”
Daughter Kathy Brown of Allegheny Township recalled how her father surprised her for her 40th birthday with a flying trip to Marathon in the Florida Keys.
Son-in-law Steve Brown said he learned sound business practices from Key, and the lessons carried over into his everyday life.
“I learned to approach things logically, with critical thinking and reasoning. He showed me a way to approach life differently,” Steve Brown said.
Key subscribed to four daily news publications.
“He was a voracious reader and read the paper every day,” Patty Key said.
Breeding and owning champion standardbred horses, which compete in harness racing, led to Key ranking among the top 15 money-winning breeders.
Bob purchased two farms in Armstrong and Butler counties during the late 1980s, naming them both Winning Key Farms. They were home to more than 250 breeding mares.
His horse American Winner won the 1993 Hambletonian Stakes, the first leg of trotting’s Triple Crown.
The purse for that race was $1.2 million.
Key’s brother Philip, of Allegheny Township, described his brother as an outdoorsman.
“We once traveled to the 1976 World’s Fair, and we liked to hunt geese in Canada and walleye,” Philip said. “He taught me so much, I’m like a semi-attorney.”
Younger brother Richard Key, 78, of Phoenix, serves as CEO for the family business.
He said he will miss his daily phone calls with Bob.
“I was a banker for 25 years, and ,of all the business people I met, he stood out as the most intelligent, well-read and diversified person, but he had a kind heart,” Richard Key said.
The family said Key Bellevilles will continue to operate.
“We have a strong team in place to continue the legacy,” Rob Key said.