The National Museum of Industrial History (abbreviated NMIH), housed in the former facility of

Bethlehem Steel The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. For most of the 20th century, it was one of the world's largest steel producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its succe ...

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Bethlehem is a city in Northampton and Lehigh Counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, Bethlehem had a total population of 75,781. Of this, 55,639 were in Northampton County and 19, ...

, is a museum affiliated with the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

that seeks to preserve, educate, and display the industrial history of the nation. It holds a collection of artifacts from the

textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

, steel and iron, and

propane gas Propane () is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula . It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as ...

industries. The NMIH holds a significant collection of

industrial machinery The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to industrial machinery: Essence of industrial machinery * Heavy equipment * Hardware * Industrial process * Machine * Machine tool * Tool Industrial machines * Agricul ...

on loan from the institute's

National Museum of American History The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...

. The museum also has a large collection of documents, machinery, photographs, and other archival material from

. The museum made its debut in August 2016 with the goal to "forge a connection between America's industrial past and the innovations of today by educating the public and inspiring the visionaries of tomorrow". The $7.5 million museum has four exhibitions each focusing on a different aspect of industrial history that affected both Pennsylvania and the rest of the country. The museum showcases the nation's industrial past by highlighting the machinery and the lives of workers at that time period.

History

The National Museum of Industrial History opened in August 2016. The museum's curator of collections, Andria Zaia, stated their goal was "to forge a connection between America's industrial past and the innovations of today by educating the public and inspiring the visionaries of tomorrow." The museum occupies the former

plant building, which had been renovated many times in past years. The

steel mill A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finish ...

has been closed since 1995, but has been brought to life with concerts, historical walking paths and is now a full-time museum. Bethlehem Steel had been the nation's leading shipbuilder and its second leading steel producer. Even though the steel industry has left the Bethlehem area, its history remains. Each of the exhibitions represent a different aspect of industrial history in Pennsylvania and the nation. The museum is the first Smithsonian Affiliate. The museum was proposed in the 1990s, but was sidelined due to legal issues which prevented clearance for opening until 2015. During the first few years they raised nearly $17 million The delay prompted a state

grand jury A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a pe ...

investigation, whose 2014 report concluded the museum suffered from serious mismanagement and wasted public and private funds. The panel referred the matter to the

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

's office but the Attorney General found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing or misappropriation of funds and concluded the museum was financially viable. Her office gave the museum two years to open or dissolve. Interpretive Planner Rosalind Remer then designed and created the exhibits on time, a feat that should have taken three years according to Aaron Goldblatt, the museum's Design Project Manager.

Exhibitions

Machinery Hall

The Machinery Hall displays the then-current American industrial technology from the 1876 Centennial International Exposition. Corliss steam engine 2

Within this exhibit includes an interactive display of Bethlehem Steel's history of industry dominance to engage the viewers passing by. Other depictions within this display include presentations describing where the produced steel was used and the diversity of origin of their very own workers. Employees hailed from many different countries to work at Bethlehem Steel.

Iron and Steel

The Iron and Steel collection celebrates the history of Bethlehem Steel, the location of the museum itself. This collection is a permanent part of the museum and its artifacts are mainly donated by the

Bethlehem Steel Corporation The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. For most of the 20th century, it was one of the world's largest steel producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its succ ...

. It focuses on the corporation's history with steel-making. This exhibit serves to present insight into the daily lives of workers part of Bethlehem Steel which employed 31,000 people at peak. The three Bethlehem Steel plant models showcased in this exhibit were used training employees and testing out modifications to the factories. Additionally, the first piece of steel ever made in the Bethlehem Steel mill along with a commemorative anvil. There is also an interactive map which allows users to see the reach Bethlehem Steel had across the United States.

Silk Gallery Hall

While the men worked at Bethlehem Steel, women and young children worked at

Lehigh Valley Silk Mills The Lehigh Valley Silk Mills were a collection of mills located in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania in the 19th and 20th centuries. The industry began in 1881 and thrived throughout the Industrial Revolution. The Lehigh Valley Si ...

which employed even more people than the steel industry did in Bethlehem. The Silk Gallery serves to tell the story of these working women and children. This exhibit, a permanent part of the museum, walks visitors through an interactive process of how silk is made. Visitors are able to experience the work done by workers by holding a 20-pound bobbin tray that children carried for hours at the silk factories. Other tools are on display such as line shafts and looms.

Propane Gallery

The Propane Gallery focuses on the workings of

Walter O. Snelling Walter Otheman Snelling (December 13, 1880September 10, 1965) was a chemist who contributed to the development of explosives, ordnance, and liquefied petroleum gas. Early life and career Walter Otheman Snelling was born in Washington, D.C. on De ...

, an American chemist from Allentown who discovered how to distill propane. Items from his laboratory are on display at the museum including photos from his propane company, American Gasol Co. Additionally, there is an educational exhibit showing the propane usage in the country during World War II.

Rotating Gallery

There is a changing gallery at the NMIH. Currently, this gallery holds 3-D printers, loaned to them by

Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU) is a private research university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer and was originally affiliated with the Epis ...

and Northampton Area Community College. There is a schedule planned for the next year that includes commemorating the 75th anniversity of the "E" for Excellence Award. In 1941, the navy gave this award to the Bethlehem Steel Plant because of their 37,778 plus production of ships for the war effort. In May 2017, the NMIH will open a new exhibit called Making America's Pastime which will focus on the production of the

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

equipment and the history behind the success of the MLB.

Artifacts

The nearly $7.5 million museum houses over 200 artifacts. One of which is the museum itself, built within the frame of the Steel plant's Electric Repair Shop that ran back in 1913. Within the section involving the 1876 World's Fair, visitors are welcomed by artifacts and machines that were displayed at the Centennial International Exposition. Such machines include massive 19th and 20th century engines and pumps. After the Centennial International Exposition, most of the machines went directly to the

Smithsonian Museum The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

, but the museum has donated several artifacts to Bethlehem's very own. Amy Hollander, executive director of the museum stated in reference to the artifacts, "Among them are some that are the first made, the longest operating or the last produced. These objects are gateways to bigger stories." Amidst first made and last produced include the first piece of steel rolled in Bethlehem and last rolled piece of Class A armor. The Machinery Hall holds 21 artifacts loaned by the Smithsonian Institution which were previously on display at the

. Items from the 1876 World's Fair in Philadelphia can be found on display in this exhibition. The largest and most prominent artifact in this hall is the 115-ton, 8 MGD, International Steam Pump Company's Snow,

Corliss Steam Engine A Corliss steam engine (or Corliss engine) is a steam engine, fitted with rotary valves and with variable valve timing patented in 1849, invented by and named after the American engineer George Henry Corliss of Providence, Rhode Island. Engines ...

that had pumped water for York, PA beginning in 1914. In addition to the steam engine, the Machinery Hall also boasts a Milwaukee's Pawling & Harnischfeger Co. Crane and an H-beam from Bethlehem Steel. Other artifacts displayed in this hall include original items used by workers such as punch cards, hard hats, whistles, welfare baskets, and safety reports. The Silk Gallery Hall depicts the history of the Lehigh Valley Silk industry. Within this exhibit, you are greeted by the most prominent artifact, the

Jacquard loom The Jacquard machine () is a device fitted to a loom that simplifies the process of manufacturing textiles with such complex patterns as brocade, damask and matelassé. The resulting ensemble of the loom and Jacquard machine is then called a Ja ...

. This loom was used in conjunction with the Scalamandre Silk Mill located in Long Island City, New York. It was utilized to produce the fabric for the White House for nearly eighty years up until

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

's presidency. One particular piece of fabric that was formed for

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

holds a place in this exhibit. In the Propane Gallery, the most prominent display is an interactive hot air balloon simulation. Visitors are able to step into a hot air balloon basket to not only learn about how propane fuels this device but also get a sense of an actual hot air balloon ride. Glenn Koehler, NMIH's marketing and outreach coordinator believes that the Propane Gallery is the most popular interactive exhibit. Mechanical and digital characteristics such as moving floor boards and aerial video give the viewers a very well rounded, realistic approach to a hot air balloon ride. The educational purpose of this display is to express the widespread use of propane gas.

Gallery

File:National museum of industrial history artifact.jpg, Steam drop forge at the NMIH File:Propane exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of Industrial History.jpg, Hot air balloon interactive exhibit File:Nmih entrance1.jpg, NMIH entrance File:Plant display nmih.jpg, Plant display File:Jacquard loom nmih.jpg, Jaquard loom File:Baseball bat production.jpg, Baseball bat production File:Baseball glove production 1.jpg, Baseball glove production

References

External links

* {{authority control 2016 establishments in Pennsylvania Bethlehem, Pennsylvania History museums in Pennsylvania Industry museums in Pennsylvania Museums established in 2016 Museums in Northampton County, Pennsylvania

Industrial History The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going fr ...