Rivers of Steel Heritage Area and Bost Building

Description

Created by Congress in 1996, the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area is committed to preserving, interpreting, and managing the historic, cultural, and natural resources related to Big Steel and its related industries. Encompassing over 5,000 square miles in the seven counties of Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Westmoreland, Greene, Fayette, and Washington, Rivers of Steel is building on this area's remarkable transition from heavy industry to high technology and diversified services as well as bolstering the new regional economy by promoting tourism and economic development based on this region's historic industrial saga.

A multifaceted program, the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area's mission includes: historic preservation, cultural conservation, education, recreation, and resource development. Currently, the Heritage Area has bills in Congress to create the Homestead Works National Park. The proposed park would be located on 38 acres surrounding the Carrie Furnaces, the last of the giant blast furnaces from the Homestead Works, and the Pump House, site of the bloody 1892 Homestead Steel Strike.

River of Steel also maintains the Bost Building, an 1892 hotel, in which it presents exhibits.

The Bost Building offers exhibits and educational programs.

The Great Migration

Description

This iCue Mini-Documentary describes how, at the outbreak of World War I, industries in the north opened employment to African Americans. They left the south in record numbers for jobs in the north.

This feature is no longer available.

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

Description

The fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist factory in New York City was the deadliest workplace disaster in New York history until 9/11. David Von Drehle, the author of Triangle: The Fire that Changed America, discusses the fire in this segment from the NBC Today Show.

This feature is no longer available.

The Lowell Girls

Description

This iCue Mini-Documentary presents the textile industry in Lowell, MA, as representative of the transition of American girls from the farms to the factories.

This feature is no longer available.

America's Industrial Revolution at the Henry Ford

Description

The America's Industrial Revolution workshop at the Henry Ford will draw together K–12 educators with leading humanities scholars and museum staff for unique enrichment exercises centered on the impact of industrialization. The workshop is designed to encourage participant curiosity and deepen knowledge on the subject, engage participants with innovative methods of transmitting enthusiasm and content to students, and empower participants to use cultural resources to enliven the teaching and learning of history. Participants will explore the diverse ways that Americans experienced social change between the 1760s and the 1920s through lecture/discussions and by visiting with museum curators at 12 of the 80 historic sites interpreted in Greenfield Village, including Thomas Edison's Menlo Park Laboratory, Hermitage Plantation Slave Quarters, 1760s Daggett Farm, 1880s Firestone Farm, a railroad roundhouse, and a 19th-century grist mill. In addition, time is set aside each day for exploration of archival sources in the Benson Ford Research Center and to work on individual lesson plans for implementation back home. The week's activities will culminate with a visit to a related National Historic Landmark, the Ford Motor Company's Rouge Industrial Complex.

Contact name
Spencer, Ryan
Contact email
Registration Deadline
Sponsoring Organization
Henry Ford Museum
Phone number
313-982-6100
Target Audience
K-12
Start Date
Cost
Free; $750 stipend
Course Credit
This workshop entails approximately 40 hours of direct instruction and participation. Michigan SB-CEUs will be available, pending approval from the Michigan State Board of Education, for a nominal fee of $10. The workshop staff will work with participants to provide the documentation needed to apply for CEUs from their home districts or states. Undergraduate or graduate credit is available for this workshop through the University of Michigan–Dearborn.
Duration
Six days
End Date