Preserving a Legacy:
The Key Bridge, the Port of Baltimore, and the workers who were lost
As a museum dedicated to preserving the legacy of local work and workers, and situated just up the river from the bridge, the BMI is embarking on “Echoes from the Key Bridge,” a project to preserve the stories of workers who have been impacted by the bridge collapse. Read more about it in The Baltimore Sun.
“Really being able to get into the community of impacted people and hear from them firsthand about the experience is really critical to capture the perspective of people who have often been written out of history.” – Becky Eisen, Baltimore Community Foundation
By recording and preserving firsthand accounts of the tragedy and its aftermath, “Echoes from the Key Bridge” will amplify marginalized voices, including those of immigrants and laborers whose contributions often go unrecognized. Baltimore-based community artist Maria Aldana, co-founding director of Art of Solidarity, has been selected by the Baltimore Museum of Industry to record oral histories of community members. Ms. Aldana has two decades of experience bringing marginalized communities together through storytelling, film, murals, and traveling exhibitions. The recorded accounts will be preserved as part of the BMI’s permanent collection.
Francis Scott Key Bridge, by Steven Madow
In addition to recording the stories of workers, in April 2024 the museum announced its Key Bridge collecting initiative, with the goal of preserving materials that tell the stories of workers connected to the bridge and associated Port-related industry. In keeping with the themes at the heart of the museum’s mission, it seeks materials related to workers, working-class communities, immigration/migration, and the production and distribution of goods. To donate an artifact, please visit the museum’s artifact donation page here.
Labor + Innovation: Echoes of the Key Bridge on December 3rd, video by Anthony Lynch
A temporary community memorial, featuring a mural by Texas artist Roberto Marquez, has been preserved by local 3D scanning company Direct Dimensions. Take a virtual tour here. The artist has met with members of the BMI staff and is considering donating part of the mural to the BMI’s collecting initiative.
Echoes from the Key Bridge is made possible with support from Ports America Chesapeake and STA of Baltimore Charitable Legacy, Inc., the Baltimore Community Foundation, the Baltimore National Heritage Area, the Delaplaine Foundation, and Maryland Humanities.
Mural artist Roberto Marquez, by Anita Kassof
