Bethlehem steel rail yard coaster

The massive blast furnaces stand. The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company that, for most of the 20th century, was one of the world's largest steel producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success and productivity, the company was a symbol of American manufacturing leadership in the world, and its decline and ultimate liquidation in the late 20th century is similarly cited as an example of America's diminished manufacturing leadership. From its founding in 1857 through its 2003 dissolution, Bethlehem Steel's headquarters and primary steel mill manufacturing facilities were based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. The company's steel was used in the construction of many of America's largest and most famed structures. Among major buildings, Bethlehem Steel was used in constructing of 28 Liberty Street, the Chrysler Building, the Empire State Building, Madison Square Garden, Rockefeller Centre, and the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York City and Merchandise Mart in Chicago. Among major bridges, Bethlehem Steel was used in constructing the George Washington Bridge and Verrazzano Narrows Bridge in New York City, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and the Peace Bridge between Buffalo and Fort Erie, Ontario. photo © copyright Stan Feldman January 1st 1999