Fire & Shadow: The Rise and Fall of Bethlehem Steel, tells the story of Baltimore’s Sparrows Point steel mill, once the world’s largest producer of the world’s most important product. The mill’s well-paying union jobs supported countless Baltimoreans and nourished close-knit communities.
And then it was gone. When the company went bankrupt in 2002, thousands of retirees saw their pensions cut and their healthcare benefits stripped away. When the mill shut for good in 2012, thousands more lost their jobs.
Today, as economic activity returns to Sparrows Point, the former Bethlehem Steel site stands as a symbol of Baltimore’s industrial past and the possible birth of a new economy.
On view now, Fire & Shadow includes vivid photographs, moving first-person narratives, original artifacts, and an opportunity to explore Bethlehem Steel objects in three dimensions through augmented reality.
“To be a steelworker meant you were the backbone of the nation.”
– Ed Gorman, Sparrows Point steelworker
Fire & Shadow is generously supported by:
The Davis Family Foundation
Tradepoint Atlantic
Balti Virtual
Direct Dimensions
Residential Title and Escrow Co.
Titan Steel
Venable, LLP
Composite image Baltimore Museum of Industry. Photos: A. Aubrey Bodine © Jennifer Bodine; A. Aubrey Bodine, Maryland Center for History and Culture.
Explore artifacts from Sparrows Point, and virtually try on some of the protective gear and take a selfie. Click Here
