Bethlehem Steel Tours (home, school, casino)

[mwr6348]

Hi All,

I was wondering if anyone out there had any information regarding the tours that had been going on at Bethlehem Steel. Back in early fall signs were still up, but they have since blown down. With constuction time drawing near on BethWorks I was wondering if anybody knew if the tours were still going on?

[PAman]

I don't believe they are doing them anymore...We're going to lose a real piece of history in a few months...While it's sad, I accept america isn't a smokestack industral country anymore, the cities with the great steel mills and dance halls are becoming a thing of the past...Southside Bethlehem isn't exactly the most favorable place in the world right now...I'm in bethlehem enough to tell you it's changed big time...Polish hill isn't quite Polish anymore...They closed the slovak school, consolidated several others, the BASD isn't great, but its not awful either, i know some teachers there, they really care but a lot of the kids just seem to not respond to anything...

Get to bethlehem and at least look at the place while you still can. You have to paint yourself a mental picture of the smoke billowing from the blast furnaces, the molten iron being poured into casts, i beams being loaded on trains, the whistle blowing and hard working, dirty, tired but proud steelworkers walk home for the night...not exactly what it was, but the memory of the Steel will never die as long as people tell the story of what the casino used to be.

[mwr6348]

Thanks PAman,

I actually live almost directly in the shadows of the furnaces. I've lived here (Throughout Bethlehem) my whole life and suffice to say as of late the changes have been wide and sweeping. I'm not really opposed to the casino project as much as the other development thats greatly downgraded the quality of life here. We're letting our downtowns to go to ruin while we build artificial ones in the suburbs. I'm not among those in the "I hate NYer's" club which seems to be recruiting daily, as I believe the NY influx has caused mostly positive changes as far as retail and commercial development. As far as those claiming it brought drugs....well we had drugs here long before, and lets face it, Route 78 has done much more to further drug trafficking than our affordable McMansions and commuter bus lines.

Anyway, I digress....to all those out there who remember the Bethlehem of years ago, this may be your last chance to catch a glimpse before it fades away.