NATIONAL MUSEUM OF INDUSTRIAL HISTORY

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF INDUSTRIAL HISTORY CELEBRATES THE STORY OF AMERICA'S RICH INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE. INVENTORS, MANUFACTURERS, INNOVATORS, WORKERS, AND THEIR PRODUCTS ARE SHOWCASED WITHIN A TURN OF THE 20TH CENTURY INDUSTRIAL BUILDING ON THE SITE OF THE FORMER BETHLEHEM STEEL CORPORATION BETHLEHEM PLANT.IN OUR MACHINERY HALL, TREASURED ARTIFACTS ON LOAN FROM THE SMITHSONIAN'S NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN HISTORY FASCINATE VISITORS. INSPIRED BY THE 1876 CENTENNIAL EXPOSITION IN PHILADELPHIA, VISITORS LEARN ABOUT THE INGENUITY OF VARIOUS INVENTORS AND ARE CAPTIVATED BY AN IMPRESSIVE DISPLAY OF EARLY MACHINES; DRILL PRESSES AND LATHES, BOILERS AND STEAM ENGINES. THE IRON AND STEEL GALLERY CONVEYS THE MASSIVE SCALE OF THE STEEL INDUSTRY FROM RAW MATERIALS TO MANUFACTURED PRODUCT AND ITS ROLE IN BUILDING AND DEFENDING THE COUNTRY. VISITORS LEARN HOW NATURAL FIBERS WERE WOVEN INTO SILK DAMASK AND THE CHANGING NATURE OF THE AMERICAN WORKER IN FACTORIES ACROSS THE NATION. THE PROPANE GALLERY HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE SCIENTIST IN CREATING NEW FORMS OF ENERGY. FROM THE SOUNDS OF A MOVING LINE SHAFTING AND LISTENING TO WORKERS' STORIES TO GIVING VISITORS THE CHANCE TO PHYSICALLY REPLICATE WORK HAPPENING IN THE STEEL AND SILK MILLS OF OUR REGION, OUR GALLERIES EMBRACE THE INTERACTIVE PHILOSOPHY AND PROVIDE HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE TO ENGAGE THE VISITOR. THE EXHIBITS AT NMIH INCORPORATE CHANGING ELEMENTS TO ALLOW FOR ONGOING UPDATING AND SPECIAL SEASONAL OFFERINGS. MANY OF OUR INTERPRETIVE GUIDES HAVE WORKED IN INDUSTRY AND PROVIDE A LIVING REFERENCE SOURCE FOR INQUISITIVE VISITORS AND SCHOOL GROUPS. DOCENTS ARE HIGHLY TRAINED TO COVEY COMPLEX MESSAGES IN A SIMPLE MANNER AND ARE THE KEY TO MAKING THE MUSEUM A PLACE THAT INSPIRES.