Many have called the sailing ship era the time of wooden ships and iron men. I'm not sure where this phrase was first used, but this website attributes it to a

Many have called the sailing ship era the time of wooden ships and iron men. I'm not sure where this phrase was first used, but this website attributes it to a 1930 poem: https://www.madisonhistory.org/madisons-iron-men/ https://www.madisonhistory.org/madisons-iron-men/