Thank you for connecting, thank you for giving, thank you for keeping the stories of Baltimore’s industrial history alive. We are stronger with you.
“You’ve got to ask yourself, what will tomorrow look like? Because it’s changing every day, with things like Uber and self-driving cars,” muses BMI benefactor Henry A. Rosenberg, Jr.
Questions like this inspired Rosenberg to support Fueling the Automobile Age, an exhibition at the Baltimore Museum of Industry that explores how Baltimore’s American Oil Company and Crown Central Petroleum shaped America’s love affair with the automobile—and looks ahead at innovations that are driving the next transportation age.
Rosenberg is the grandson of Louis Blaustein, a Lithuanian immigrant who personified the American dream, rising from kerosene peddler to the founder of the American Oil Company. From a young age, Rosenberg was keenly aware of the family’s commitment to philanthropic giving.
[quote color=”color3″ boxed=”yes”]I grew up knowing that giving was one of the things my family did, and I hope to carry on what the early generations set into motion.[author]Henry Rosenberg, Jr.[/author][/quote]
As Chairman, President, and CEO of Crown Central Petroleum, Rosenberg grew the company into one of the nation’s largest regional independent petroleum companies, with gas stations from New York to Florida, including some 200 in the Baltimore-Washington region. His proudest professional accomplishment? Providing a consistently high level of service to customers, as Crown led the industry in transforming single-pump operations into gleaming full-service stations complete with convenience stores and car care.
In philanthropy, too, it is the end user—the people—who inspire Rosenberg’s giving. For the BMI, his commitment to ensuring that visitors have meaningful and memorable experiences has had a profound and lasting impact.
Giving the BMI the opportunity to create Fueling the Automobile Age was a natural for Rosenberg. He is optimistic about Baltimore’s future, and about the ability of targeted philanthropic investment to help shape it. A passionate supporter of educational causes, he aims to ensure that people understand their history. “I hope my support for the museum helps succeeding generations learn about and appreciate the beginnings of things,” he says, “because so many important things started right here in Baltimore.”
As the BMI’s 2015 Industrialist of the Year, Rosenberg helped raise funds for the museum’s education programs, enabling us to underwrite the cost of admission for students who might not otherwise be able to participate. With his sponsorship of Fueling the Automobile Age, Rosenberg once again helped the BMI achieve two important visitor-oriented strategic goals: providing more hands-on, interactive activities for our visitors, and encouraging them to look ahead, considering how industry will continue to evolve in Baltimore.
Learn more about Fueling the Automobile Age.
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Fueling the Automobile Age
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