Anything Goes: Radio Reprograms America, 1920-1940
2025-02-08 13:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Radio defined and shaped popular culture, unifying the nation through a common medium during difficult times. Unexpectedly bursting onto the airwaves in 1920, radio technology created challenges and opportunities for providing popular content. Join us to hear about the evolution of radio from Dr. John Smith, Lehigh University History Professor Emeritus. Included with museum admission.

Museum in Motion Day
2025-02-15 11:00 - 15:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us from 11am – 3pm as we bring history to life as select industrial artifacts from the 19th and 20th centuries operate. Mechanical marvels ranging from stationary steam engines to ribbon looms will be demonstrated. The Corliss Steam Engine will run at 11:30am and 2:30pm. All included with regular museum admission.

Family Sundays & S.T.E.A.M. Adventures
2025-02-16 11:00 - 15:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States

Film Screening: Hello Girls
2025-03-01 13:00 - 14:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
In 1918, the U.S. Army Signal Corps sent 223 women to France as telephone operators to help win the Great War. They were intrepid, united in a common cause and like Joan of Arc before them, they wanted to save France. Told through 100-year-old letters, photos, rare archival footage, and interviews with family and historians, this documentary brings to life a story that was almost entirely unknown.
Included with museum admission.

First Friday
2025-03-07 18:00 - 20:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us for First Friday, March 7th for extended hours and free admission from 6-8pm. Enjoy live music, hands-on demonstrations and S.T.E.A.M. activities.

Anthracite Everyday Women Extraordinary Lives
2025-03-08 13:00 - 14:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us at the National Museum of Industrial History as we welcome author Charmaine Welby to share inspiring stories of courageous women from Pennsylvania’s coal region from her new book.
“Anthracite Everyday Women Extraordinary Lives” highlights the inspiring stories of ten remarkable women from the anthracite coal region of Pennsylvania. This collection celebrates their strength, courage, and resilience in overcoming significant challenges with stability and grace. Each narrative reflects universal themes of hope, love, and perseverance, offering profound insights into the beauty found within everyday struggles. The book deeply examines these women’s journeys, showcasing their impact on their communities and emphasizing their contributions to family and relationships.
Charmaine Welby is a retired teacher celebrating everyday women’s strength and significance. Throughout her career, Charmaine worked closely with young adults with disabilities and was a standardized patient educator at a local hospital. She has been actively engaging with readers through appearances at local libraries and was featured on Author’s Corner on Channel 27 in Harrisburg on Good Day Pa.
Included with museum admission.

Iron Pour with artist Vaughn Randall
2025-03-15 10:00 - 14:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join industrial artist Vaughn Randall for a live demonstration of a biodiesel fueled iron melting furnace. Using renewable resources and recycled metal, Randall will melt iron and pour it into molds, creating works of art. Guests are invited to view the entire process, from lighting the furnace to tapping the liquid metal, and discuss the process with Randall and his volunteer helpers. There may even be some experiments with different fuels, making for a fascinating day combining science, technology, history, and art. The event will take place from 10 AM to 2 PM in Foundry Park in front of the National Museum of Industrial History in Bethlehem, PA. Be sure to return after dinner, at 7 PM, for a second iron pour at Steelstacks with artist Coral Lambert and Paul Higham.
Vaughn Randall is currently a professor of sculpture at the State University of New York in Cortland, NY. He received his MFA in sculpture from the University of Washington in Seattle, and his BFA in sculpture from Georgia State University. He was instrumental in the development of the Sloss Furnaces Metal Arts program in Birmingham, Alabama, and served as the Co-Director of the 8th International Conference on Contemporary Cast Iron Art. He has been an active member of the cast-iron art community for over 30 years. Randall has an extensive background in both industrial and artistic foundry processes and is trained as a model maker and a master wood patternmaker. His work has been exhibited extensively and is in the collection of the John Michael Kohler Art Center, the University of Alabama in Birmingham, SUNY Cortland, the US National Park Service, The City of Clarksville TN, The Chinese Cultural Council, Jingdezhen, China, as well as many private collections.

Film Screening & Panel Discussion: Women Of Steel
2025-03-15 14:00 - 15:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Women contributed greatly to the success of Bethlehem Steel, the second largest steel producer in the nation for almost a century. In conjunction with our annual Steel Weekend event, these 19 remarkable women of Bethlehem Steel shared their experiences working in the plants, offices, and at research for our oral history project. Their full interviews are preserved in our National Museum of Industrial History Bethlehem Steel Archives.
Enjoy this screening of the Women of Steel documentary followed by a panel discussion with several female former Bethlehem Steel employees.
Included with museum admission

Starry Starry Stacks
2025-03-15 19:00 - 21:00 | SteelStacks, 101 Founders Way, Bethlehem, PA, 18015

March S.T.E.A.M. Adventures
2025-03-16 11:00 - 15:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States

Rosie the Riveter Day
2025-03-22 10:00 - 17:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us as we celebrate the hard-working women in industry during World War II.
10am-5pm Riveting Pop-Up Display
See some of WWII to mid-century era tools used for field riveting large structures like bridges.
11am-3pm Meet & Greet Historical Reenactors
Interact with our historical reenactors for a taste of what life what like for a woman to join the industrial workforce in the era.
1pm FILM SCREENING: The Life & Times of Rosie the Riveter
Domestic. Shop girl. Waitress. Cook. Those were the jobs for women in the 1930’s — when they could get work. Suddenly the U.S. entry into World War II created an unprecedented demand for new workers. Notions of what was proper work for women changed overnight. Thousands of posters and billboards appeared calling on women to “Do the Job He Left Behind.” Rosie the Riveter was born — the symbol of working women during World War II.
After whirlwind training, women found themselves doing “men’s work” and they did it so well that production levels rose despite the military call-up of millions of male workers. They discovered a new sense of pride and dignity in their work. Their earnings leapt upwards. Many joined unions and found substantial new benefits from labor representation. And for the first time in history, black women gained entry into major industrial plants.
When the war was over, Rosie wanted to stay. But neither the structure of the American economy nor the dominant view of women’s place in society sustained such hopes.
The story is told by the women themselves — five former “Rosies” who movingly recall their histories working in Detroit, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco during the war. Their testimony is interwoven with rare archival recruitment films, stills, posters, ads and music from the period which contrast their experiences with the popular legend and mythology of Rosie the Riveter.
2pm FILM SCREENING: No Time To Waste
No Time to Waste celebrates legendary 98-year-old park ranger Betty Reid Soskin‘s inspiring life, work and urgent mission to restore critical missing chapters of America’s story. The film follows her journey as an African American woman presenting her personal story from a kitchen stool in a national park theater to media interviews and international audiences who hang on every word she utters.
The documentary captures her fascinating life — from the experiences of a young Black woman in a WWII segregated union hall, through her multi-faceted career as a singer, activist, mother, legislative representative and park planner to her present public role.
At the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historical Park, Betty illuminates the invisible histories of African Americans and other people of color. Her efforts have changed the way the National Park Service conveys this history to audiences across the U.S., challenging us all to move together toward a more perfect union.
All programs included with regular museum admission. Come dressed as Rosie for $2 off admission.
Rosie Resources
Learn how to dress like a Rosie!
Download a Rosie Coloring Page
Learn More on the Rosie the Riveter WWII Homefront National Historical Park
Check out the YouTube Channel for Rosie the Riveter National Trust

Film Screening: Women of Steel
2025-03-29 13:00 - 14:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Women contributed greatly to the success of Bethlehem Steel, the second largest steel producer in the nation for almost a century. In conjunction with our annual Steel Weekend event, these 19 remarkable women of Bethlehem Steel shared their experiences working in the plants, offices, and at research for our oral history project. Their full interviews are preserved in our National Museum of Industrial History Bethlehem Steel Archives.
Enjoy this screening of the Women of Steel documentary included with regular museum admission.

April First Friday
2025-04-04 18:00 - 20:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us for SouthSide Arts District’s First Friday, April 4th for extended hours and free admission from 6-8pm. Enjoy live music, live machinery demonstrations, vintage film screenings and family-friendly S.T.E.A.M. activities.
Be sure to check out the many other special events going on throughout the SouthSide community here.

Bethlehem Steel Locomotive Experience
2025-04-06 11:00 - 15:15, 2025-05-04 11:00 - 15:15, 2025-05-18 11:00 - 15:15, 2025-06-01 11:00 - 15:15 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States

Curators' Tour: Unseen Signals
2025-04-25 16:00 - 17:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join IEEE curators and historians Alex Magoun and Daniel Jon Mitchell for a behind-the-scenes highlights tour of their exhibit, “Unseen Signals: E. Howard Armstrong’s Radio Revolution”
Learn how they obtained rare and unique artifacts to tell the story of America’s greatest radio inventor, Major E. Howard Armstrong, and the wireless world that he and many other researchers, entrepreneurs, and listeners created over the course of the 20th century.
Dr. Magoun is outreach historian for IEEE. He has published, lectured, and been interviewed for History’s Greatest of All Time with Peyton Manning on the histories of consumer electronics and wireless communications. Before joining IEEE’s History Center, he directed the David Sarnoff Library at RCA’s former laboratories in Princeton.
Dr. Mitchell is senior historian for IEEE and staff program lead for the IEEE Global Museum. Originally from the UK, he has taught, researched and published on the history of physics in Hong Kong, Germany, and now America. Before joining IEEE’s History Center, he directed the Beckman Center for the History of Chemistry at the Science History Institute in Philadelphia.
IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity. The IEEE Global Museum presented by the IEEE History Center brings traveling exhibits to IEEE members and the public to promote an understanding of electrotechnology and its impact on society.
Program includes Museum admission. Free for NMIH and IEEE Members. Registration required HERE.

SouthSide Community Day
2025-04-26 10:00 - 17:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us for our annual SouthSide Community Day and enjoy free admission and family-friendly activities including…

Museum in Motion – Artifact demonstrations including our Corliss Steam Engine demos at 11:30 and 2:30.
Live retro radio performance at 3:00pm
Hands-on S.T.E.A.M. activities for youth & families
Meet Tug! our beloved Bethlehem Steel Tow Tractor

Live Retro Radio Performance
2025-04-26 15:00 - 16:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Before the Internet, there was television. Before television, there was Radio. Join us at the National Museum of Industrial History during SouthSide Community Day to experience a 1940’s “LIVE” Radio Broadcast without having to Time Travel.
S.O.A.P., now in its second decade of touring, performs original broadcasts from the 30’s through the 50’s for community organizations. S.O.A.P. voice actors have turned their love of nostalgia, popular culture, and historical preservation into live entertainment for all ages.

First Friday at NMIH
2025-05-02 18:00 - 20:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us for SouthSide Arts District’s First Friday, May 2nd for extended hours and free admission from 6-8pm. Be sure to check out the many other special events going on throughout the SouthSide community here.
Featuring free admission
Live demonstrations
Book signing with author Bill Childs
Hands-on S.T.E.A.M. activities
7:45 Flashlight Tours (registration required)

Bethlehem Steel Flashlight Tours
2025-05-02 19:45 - 21:00, 2025-06-06 20:30 - 22:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States

S.T.E.A.M. Adventures
2025-05-18 11:00 - 15:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States

PA Shakespear Festival "Play On!" Community Tour at NMIH
2025-05-31 11:00 - 12:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States

GUEST LECTURE - Archibald Johnston: Multifaceted Man
2025-05-31 13:00 - 14:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
The Archie Project is a nonprofit 501(c)(3), whose purpose is to raise funds to restore the interior of the Historic Archibald Johnston Mansion in Bethlehem Township’s Housenick Park. Hear from John Gallagher about the project and the history behind this historic property and family.
Archibald Johnston arrived in Bethlehem from Phoenixville, Pennsylvania while still in elementary school. He thrived in school, was a graduate of Lehigh University, and became an employee of the Bethlehem Steel Company. His intelligence, salesmanship, and people skills were valued by senior management. He made “the Steel” – and himself – a lot of money.
Johnston married the daughter of a local family, Estelle Stadiger Borhek (center right in photo), and they had two children, Elizabeth (center left) and Archibald Borhek Johnston (right).
In the late 1910s, Bethlehem Steel’s senior management saw the wisdom in the consolidation of the three Bethlehem boroughs – Bethlehem, Northampton Heights, and South Bethlehem. Johnston led the consolidation campaign and voters selected him overwhelmingly as their first mayor. He served one term and moved to his new country estate, “Camel’s Hump Farm” in Bethlehem Township.
Johnston hired Curtis Lovelace, who would later create an architectural firm which would become today’s Spillman Farmer, to design a suitable residence for himself and his wife. His two children, already adults and married with their own children, would not accompany them to the 6,000-square-foot home completed in 1923.
Johnston had a passion for civil engineering projects as well as civic work. He walled the Monocacy Creek, built a fish hatchery, a riding rink, and a series of roads and bridges connecting the buildings and homes on what was almost one square mile adjacent to Nazareth Pike.
Johnston died on February 2, 1948, having enjoyed nearly 25 years of family life with his wife and their children and grandchildren.
Included with admission

First Fridays @ NMIH
2025-06-06 18:00 - 20:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Join us for SouthSide Arts District’s First Fridays for extended hours and free admission from 6-8pm. Be sure to check out the many other special events going on throughout the SouthSide community here.
Featuring free admission
Pop-up Exhibit with Vintage Metals Designs
Booking signing with author Bill Childs
Live Music with Keith Quelet
Live machinery demonstrations including the Corliss Steam Engine
Hands-on family-friendly S.T.E.A.M. activities
Flashlight tour at 8:30 (Additional cost; pre-registration is required here)
Full details on our event website Upcoming Events – National Museum of Industrial History

Pop-Up Exhibit & Gallery Talk
2025-06-06 18:00 - 2025-06-08 17:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
Step into the world of industrial artistry and sustainable design during a special pop-up exhibit and gallery talk with master craftsman Gregg Epstein, founder of Vintage Metal Designs. This immersive experience invites visitors to discover the passion, process, and purpose behind Gregg’s remarkable furniture creations—each piece meticulously handcrafted from historically reclaimed wood and metal.
Through stories and live discussion, Gregg will share how he transforms salvaged materials into modern heirlooms, blending old-world techniques with contemporary design. Attendees will get an insider look at the inspirations behind his work, from the rich industrial legacy of the Lehigh Valley to his commitment to eco-conscious craftsmanship. Learn how every burnished surface and copper accent tells a deeper story of resilience, reinvention, and enduring beauty.
Whether you’re an art lover, history buff, or maker-at-heart, this event promises insight, inspiration, and a renewed appreciation for the objects we live with.
The exhibit will be on view Friday, June 6th 6-8pm during our First Friday event.; Saturday June 7th 10am-5pm and Sunday June 8th 10am-5pm.
The Gallery Talk will take place on Saturday, June 7th at 1pm. Mr. Epstein will be on site throughout the day Saturday and Sunday.

Corliss Comes Alive!
2025-06-06 19:00 - 19:30 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
For more than a decade the museum’s staff, volunteers, and community partners worked to restore our massive 115-ton Corliss steam engine to working order, 100+ years after being built by the Snow Steam Pump Works in Buffalo, N.Y. The engine was used by the York Water Company and pumped eight million gallons of water per day. Today the engine, the most powerful operating water works steam engine in North America, is a focal point of the museum’s 13,000 square foot exhibit space, where it has painstakingly been mechanically restored to its former glory and repainted its original color. Join us as we operate the engine and learn more about this fascinating piece of industrial history.
Demonstration will take place at 7pm during our First Friday event. Free admission.

Free Family Sunday - S.T.E.A.M. Adventures
2025-06-15 11:00 - 15:00 | National Museum of Industrial History, 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015, United States
