Last week, the Industrial Archives & Library (IAL) completed a year’s worth of work to digitize hundreds of newsletters from Bethlehem Steel locations. The approximately 476 issues tell the stories of steel plants, shipyards, mines, and various other industrial sites that helped build America.
A press release from the IAL shared that the newsletters are dated between 1978 and 1985 and contain mostly corporate news. Some, however, include stories about miners’ hobbies, corporate picnics, and the academic achievements of employees’ children.
Stephen Donces, President and CEO of the IAL, says that the “treasure trove of interesting information” is provided mostly from the perspective of everyday employees.
Credit for the work in digitizing these newsletters was given greatly to George Myers, a volunteer with the IAL. Over the past year, he’s been working every week with “a positive attitude,” says Missy Nerino, IAL’s Digital Archivist.
Myers emphasized the impact the process had on his view of history, saying that studying and working with the newsletters helped him to see the real face of Bethlehem Steel in the individual employees whose stories are told through the documents.
28 different titles made up of more than 2,700 pages were digitized during the process. Each newsletter is available, along with associated information, on the Industrial Archives & Library’s website.
The work isn’t done yet. The IAL is still looking to fill in gaps in their collection. Anyone with missing issues of newsletters is asked to contact the organization at info@industrialarchives.org, or by phone at 618-868-1115.
