I realize that things change and that there were a lot of factors involved with the closing of Bethlehem Steel and so many other entities like it, but it's so sad to think of the jobs lost. People built their lives around this place. Families lived well and lifelong friendships were forged. From a strictly human standpoint, the loss of Bethlehem Steel is a terrible one.
@@geraldobrien7323 They couldn't pay them what wasn't there, Gerald. The industry failed to keep pace with technology changes. Production processes in steel mills in the US in some cases in the 1970s weren't that different from what took place in the 1920s. That's like driving around in the 2020s in a 1968 Chevy. It's possible, but it ain't very efficient.
KSmall109CAB The money was there. It’s just that the “owners” of these steel plants chose not to keep up with technology. They chose to take all the capital that was created by the workers’ labor and invest it somewhere else where they could pay less money to their employees. It’s funny how big stockholders, most who had nothing to do with the creation of the company, get to decide what to do with all the money. Meanwhile, the workers, the ones who actually created the company’s wealth, get left in the dust. Things didn’t just uncontrollably happen. They were a result of decisions made from the top.
My grandfather worked here, his name was Basil, but he got the nickname "Oscar" from this Bethlehem steel mill. We still have no clue how he got the name Oscar lol probably friends
Amazon how the titans of steel walked away from their industry instead of remodeling to use the new technology available after WW2. We, that is, our captains of industry, effectively abandoned our steel making technology by refusing to invest in new processes.
Very true. It was a calculated risk. Why invest in new technology when you could squeeze more production out of facilities and processes that go back to the 1920s? Ironically this ended up giving the US a lot of useless steel production capacity. A bit like having lots of mainframe computers in the tablet and smartphone age.
Coming from a Steel Family it was partly the unwillingness to upgrade but federal regulations that killed the industry. Steel making is a very dirty process that’s why China and India are making the new steel from iron ore because they are not into a clean environment.
My local steel mill which is the one I work at the previous owner of the company was all about the money they didn’t care about anything else but the amount of money they can squeeze out of it so multiple blast furnaces were torn down and ripped apart as were many other parts because they didn’t want to spend money just make it. There’s a furnace still here that needs $1M worth of work and it could easily make that money back but the previous owner shut it down instead of paying for the repair. Thankfully the new owner is putting $1.2B into our largest blast furnace. He recently bought the large majority of steel mills here in America and cares and wants to put money into the largest and most profitable plant in the US his company alone is the largest producer of steel in the world
So many of this Countries landmarks were built from Steel made from this Plant. At least they’re saving some of it and not tearing it all down as a reminder of how important this Plant was. It’s a great day trip to go and see. I remember trucking past it in the 90’s while it was still in operation and then after. Very sad
Awesome video man, I've driven by here most of my life and haven't seen much of it that isn't accessible to the public, great way to showcase the steel
Heart breaking and it shouldn’t have happened. It’s been the same story here in the UK. I’m a qualified Metallurgical engineer working in what’s left of the furnace business. I’m still amazed at the speed of collapse of our heavy industrial base....I agree, it all went belly up for a number of reasons, mainly due to a lack of investment. No strategic planning, no medium to long term plans....short term outlook ruled the day
I drove trucks around America for 20 years. I have seen lots of things around this country but this tops the list of the grandest. Driving by this is something...
I visited this area last week I was so amazed by this huge complex I couldn’t believe how big was America’s industry back in the day, I’m from a third world country and I’ve never seen something like this before, so sad for the jobs lost. I remember everything that was made in America meant good quality now is everything made in China and it’s just garbage.
I'm amazed how this factory could be designed and built. It looks so complicated, all those tubes and smokestacks. I wonder how it all works. It's interesting how life goes on around it. It looks like a new parking lot right next to the building and that car is driving on the road so close to it. I guess it is still safe enough to stand up. The factory reminds me of the aesthetic of a video game called Machinarium, with the complicated pipes, old and rusty metal, abandonment, antique look. If you like point and click puzzle games, I r3commend it. It even has a version for Android and iOS. A few puzzles are unfair to figure out like a board game puzzle, so I cheated on those. But I love the main character and atmosphere.
Both political parties left this remarkable time in history to ruin, and turned their backs on the coal and steel cultures that remain in the fabric of the local culture. We hope to continue to rebuild this area and recharge with brick & mortar technologies to build a clean, affordable environment. Thank you, Andrew, for touching the past in this compelling way and bringing it to us.
I visited this mill in July 1990; it was part of program for a comparative study visit to the U.S.by a group of Asian journalists specializing in environmental journalism. The mill was still producing at the time, the management even invited us to have lunch at one of the workers' canteens. I was really surprised to see how luxurious the meals, with a lot of meat and fresh fruits offered to the workers. I thought at the time that was one most possible reason why the mill's business was fast going into an incurable loss. The workers ate the profits away in a manner they might have not reckoned was taking them down into oblivion. I think the workers there should've learned from the austere way their competitors in Japan and Korea had taken the benefits from being workers at their respective mills.
Pennsylvania looks rough, but the Iron Range of Northern Minnesota has deteriorated in at a similar rate. One of the Ore Docks in Duluth hasn't been used in quite some time. Shrubs and bushes can be seen growing up from the approach bridge. Numerous former mine pits have been abandoned for years with trucks and buildings left sitting where they were the day they closed the gates for good. Even the rail lines into the loading years are still there, buried in the weeds. Most of the oldest pits have had old equipment thrown into them and have dangerously high levels of toxins in them as they have filled with water over time. It's a mess and U.S. Steel, who owns most of what's left, cannot afford to clean some of the sights up. The ore that made a significant amount of steel for Military use in WWII came from there, and it boomed, but it's slowly busted. Virginia, MN is still growing and pits such as the Thunderbird Mine are expanding (US Highway 53 had to be rerouted over an old pit to do so).
Years ago when my husband was in the steel industry, they wanted us to relocate to Bethlehem, PA. Just a few short years later, they closed this plant. So glad I refused to move.
My late father worked at the Bethlehem plant until his passing on March 8, 1986, he was off that day. He was hit by a car at night a mile from our house in Upper Macungie Township west of Allentown. Where are you from?
This is arguably a good example of how capitalist economics really functions. That mill in Pennsylvania in the United States became a dinosaur because there was technology that was used by steel producers in South Korea, Japan, India, and China that made steel production a lot cheaper. It's a bit like a propeller plane trying to fly faster than a jet.
Hopefully the plant stays preserved in this state forever. That steel will only last so long before it becomes a danger to visitors. I just hope it last for an eternity
The industrial revolution is what made America Great. Seeing places like this tears at the very heart of working Americans. NAFTA was the worst thing that could have happened to America. This is sad beyond words.
this hurts me to see such a waste those old brick buildings still have potential. all the steel there can be recycled. the good part is that rear parking lot looks clean as if were new.its sad see that we have let America like this
Assuming that by some miracle the photographed still mill is somehow operable today it would be a bit like using a computer made in 1995 to do work in 2020. The mill is a symbol of old technology. It has by default become a museum, a reminder of an era that has passed.
At 0:30 you can see an electrical pylon with the wires cut. Guys in the Mon Valley used to try to slice up electrical wires. Sometimes they got copper. Sometimes they got killed. These mills were inefficient and probably couldn't be brought up to Clean Air Act 1970 standards. Clean Air Act 1990 standards are even tougher. Unless we're going to pay people peanuts and breathe dirty air? Forgetaboutit.
Once you ship all your money to china threw walmart ect you will work for peanuts if they will even give you that. I can't believe it, how mutch of your country are you guy's loose before you realise it?
Jamal Labarge it survived until 1995. They had actually improved thier furnaces and production quite a bit. Unfortunately, the company started destroying itself around the late 70s and never recovered
That would likely cost money that in this economic downturn would be very hard to find. Hopefully it has not become a place where addicts and vagrants congregate.
By the time we got a President that gave a damn it was too late . I'm very grateful to Wilbur Ross and Lakshimi Mittal for saving our Cleveland works .
The American steel industry for all intents and purposes was in cardiac arrest in the 1970s. It was not going to come back. It died a slow and painful death. Look at places like Baltimore, Maryland; Gary, Indiana; and Youngstown, Ohio. They will never be steel towns again.
@@johndouglas5712 I wish you were right, John. However, this country has quit on places like Lima, Ohio and Bessemer, Alabama. The US towns that were once steel towns will never be steel towns again. Unless the leadership of those communities come up with effective reinvention strategies they will die a slow and painful death, much like a rotting mansion that gives way to decay.
KSmall109CAB Lima Ohio has America’s biggest tank plant . We got the people and the skill . The tariffs are helping . Nobody did a damn thing for our Steel industry. Wilbur Ross is a hero in Cleveland. He saved our last mill and it’s going full blast
In the Baltimore old location they took it down and put in warehouse’s in Amazon is the Biggest at least they have job making ability Usa steel build the world in the 19 th century
Looks like 4 furnaces an a rolling mill not sure what else I'm seeing probley some storage An a shipping area. Not sure what they were making it all from I didn't see any are that looked like an scrap intake area
Aqua Boss it used to be much larger. It used to be five miles long. This just happens to be the most intact area. Thier used to be even more in this area long ago
Most of it was already demolished. There were stone buildings that were left intact for historical reasons. But, the Saucon Mill and Basic Oxygen Furnace are gone. Most of what you see are the "blast furnaces." They used hot air to melt iron. That was some heat! My grandfather and uncles worked there during WWII. A great place to grow up.
I build roads and bridges. All the steel needed for our projects is made in Minnesota, Indiana, Texas, or Utah. America makes 100 million tons of steel a year. You people need to do a little homework.
Hi Andrew, what an awesome video! Did you have to get permission from the steel mill to fly the drone around there? Did you use a filter on the camera because the exposure looks great.
Awesome, man! Yeah, I'm headed out there next weekend and was trying to see if I could get some shots. Looks like the steel mill is in the 5 mile radius of an airport but there's a park not too far away I was hoping I could launch from and at least get an aerial shot from a distance.
Hey there, just a follow up, I ended up going out there and didn't feel like wondering about the airport thing so I parked at a skate park a little ways away and flew from there. It was nowhere near the quality of this video here but I just used the scene as an opener flying towards it and the rest of my piece was on the ground. I will post that in a few days. Great place to visit either way!
MAN that place is big..the old ARMCO steel plant (closed-down-also) in Kansas City doesnt even compare in size..i hope Pres Trump can get these viable places going or replaced with modern stuff so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!
Jesus man, Trump is all talk. Stop beleiving on a person that is only interested in feeding his ego. He'll never be abled to restart Bethtlehem, or any huge industrial project like that. He should be creating jobs in alternative energy sector, in exploration, in technology, etc.
The size this place is nothing compared to sparrows point Maryland. It has been knocked down for the past five years but I’m sure you could find some pictures of the place online. It was once the biggest steel mill in the world
Chad Simmons If it doesn’t make a profit why revive it. We must learn to move in innovate. Sure looking at the past is good and all but the future is much more important.
The plant was an antique. Nearly all of it had been built before the Depression. A fair bit of it dated from the 19th century. Recycled scrap (Nucor) came to dominate the steel industry. BS could not compete in price with Asian steel. Too many white collar guys doing too little work to justify their pay grade. When the Cold War wound down, and the interstate system was pretty much finished, the firm marched to bankruptcy. I worked for BS nearly 50 years ago. The blue collar wage rates were decent but not phenomenal. But the benefits included health care for one's entire family, full defined benefit pension after 30 years, 13 weeks of paid vacation every 5th year starting in one's 20th year. These benefits struck me as weirdly generous, and I bet they helped sink the company.
My man. If u EVER decide to go ahead... Find me!! This is soemthing I'd risk the fines for!! You could spend hours roaming and climbing around this place! I'm sure it's dangerous but that's what makes it an adventure!
Also. Yes it is possible. There was a certain someone that I know that jumped from the sky bridge to one of the platforms. From there, an adventure could have begun.
Bethlehem Steel went filed for bankruptcy in 2001 and subsequently went out of business in 2003. Efficient assets were purchased by International Steel Group in 2003, but this plant wasn't included because it wasn't modern and efficient.
When corporate tax rates get jacked to over 50%, when it comes time to reinvest in a major physical plant improvement the numbers stop working, and only necessary repairs got done. The plant becomes less and less competitive and by the 70s electric arc furnaces and processing scrap and new EPA regs made plants like this wholely uncompetitive in a rapidly globalizing steel markey
I worked there early 1970s. There was a good culture of safety. It wasn't too dreary back then. I made about $175/week, about $930 in today's money. The health and retirement benefits were good. The shop I worked always did 2 shifts (I worked steady swing shift) and sometimes a night shift as well. But 15 years later, it closed for good. The guys told that the technology was out of date. We worked with machines that had been made in the 20s and 30s. Mack Trucks did what we did, but used injection molding, which resulted in a product requiring little or not further machinging. A rival forge shop 15 miles away used compressed air instead of steam, and could do all the smaller jobs that we did, but for a lot less money. They were nonunion as well. Continuous casting was the wave of the future, but the Bethlehem plant simply could not adopt that.
My Father worked there from 54' till it closed. I remember going to work with him.. He had passed away, and I wasn't even born yet. I miss those days.. He was born in 52, and worked there till he was 8 years old. I went to work with him while I was still in my Mothers womb.. I miss those days so bad..
So sad, the very soul of our nation ripped from her heart.
I realize that things change and that there were a lot of factors involved with the closing of Bethlehem Steel and so many other entities like it, but it's so sad to think of the jobs lost. People built their lives around this place. Families lived well and lifelong friendships were forged. From a strictly human standpoint, the loss of Bethlehem Steel is a terrible one.
E Mack only one factor in all these closing. The board of directors and big stock holders didn’t want to keep paying employees descent wages.
@@geraldobrien7323 They couldn't pay them what wasn't there, Gerald. The industry failed to keep pace with technology changes. Production processes in steel mills in the US in some cases in the 1970s weren't that different from what took place in the 1920s. That's like driving around in the 2020s in a 1968 Chevy. It's possible, but it ain't very efficient.
KSmall109CAB The money was there. It’s just that the “owners” of these steel plants chose not to keep up with technology. They chose to take all the capital that was created by the workers’ labor and invest it somewhere else where they could pay less money to their employees. It’s funny how big stockholders, most who had nothing to do with the creation of the company, get to decide what to do with all the money. Meanwhile, the workers, the ones who actually created the company’s wealth, get left in the dust. Things didn’t just uncontrollably happen. They were a result of decisions made from the top.
@@geraldobrien7323 I agree COMPLETELY !!
Haunting and beautiful...but mostly sad for me. Thank you for capturing this.
My grandfather an Uncle and Cousin worked here back in the day. Wish it was still going . Lot of good jobs lost
THOUSDANDS of good jobs lost directly from the mills and secondarily from the cottage businesses.
My grandfather worked here, his name was Basil, but he got the nickname "Oscar" from this Bethlehem steel mill. We still have no clue how he got the name Oscar lol probably friends
So sad to see in such forlorn abandonment. I remember when this place was hopping with productivity.
Did you work there, and when did this particular factory close?
This place is amazing.. Im a trucker who stayed here for a night..Its the most historical steel mill in USA
Amazon how the titans of steel walked away from their industry instead of remodeling to use the new technology available after WW2. We, that is, our captains of industry, effectively abandoned our steel making technology by refusing to invest in new processes.
Very true. It was a calculated risk. Why invest in new technology when you could squeeze more production out of facilities and processes that go back to the 1920s?
Ironically this ended up giving the US a lot of useless steel production capacity. A bit like having lots of mainframe computers in the tablet and smartphone age.
Coming from a Steel Family it was partly the unwillingness to upgrade but federal regulations that killed the industry. Steel making is a very dirty process that’s why China and India are making the new steel from iron ore because they are not into a clean environment.
My local steel mill which is the one I work at the previous owner of the company was all about the money they didn’t care about anything else but the amount of money they can squeeze out of it so multiple blast furnaces were torn down and ripped apart as were many other parts because they didn’t want to spend money just make it. There’s a furnace still here that needs $1M worth of work and it could easily make that money back but the previous owner shut it down instead of paying for the repair. Thankfully the new owner is putting $1.2B into our largest blast furnace. He recently bought the large majority of steel mills here in America and cares and wants to put money into the largest and most profitable plant in the US his company alone is the largest producer of steel in the world
So many of this Countries landmarks were built from Steel made from this Plant.
At least they’re saving some of it and not tearing it all down as a reminder of how important this Plant was.
It’s a great day trip to go and see.
I remember trucking past it in the 90’s while it was still in operation and then after. Very sad
Awesome video man, I've driven by here most of my life and haven't seen much of it that isn't accessible to the public, great way to showcase the steel
Thank you globalism.
No. More like a failure to upgrade and innovate. A classic study of what happens when you don't make changes in order to stay competitive.
@@KSmall109CAB ..nearly everything is made cheaper overseas.
@J Morris thank you i sas just thinkin the same
First they destroy your ability to grow and prosper. Then they decide whether you live at all.
Heart breaking and it shouldn’t have happened. It’s been the same story here in the UK. I’m a qualified Metallurgical engineer working in what’s left of the furnace business. I’m still amazed at the speed of collapse of our heavy industrial base....I agree, it all went belly up for a number of reasons, mainly due to a lack of investment. No strategic planning, no medium to long term plans....short term outlook ruled the day
I drove trucks around America for 20 years. I have seen lots of things around this country but this tops the list of the grandest. Driving by this is something...
First time a saw this mill, I was speechless.
Me too brother. Me too. I HAD to jump across to check some of it out myself.
Great video.Thank you.
I visited this area last week I was so amazed by this huge complex I couldn’t believe how big was America’s industry back in the day, I’m from a third world country and I’ve never seen something like this before, so sad for the jobs lost. I remember everything that was made in America meant good quality now is everything made in China and it’s just garbage.
Great drone video! I wonder why someone doesn't buy this and start running it again? It's too bad for it to be unused and slowly decay....
Amazing video thanks for sharing.
I live in Bethlehem and it is beautiful and also love Bethlehem Steel rip Bethlehem steel
Is it safe enough to explore? I realize the legality of it but in your opinion, are the structures safe? Bridges, latter's, stairs?
Back in 2009 and I guess they did I was still pulling storage out of there with CRST Malone thank you for sharing this
I'm amazed how this factory could be designed and built. It looks so complicated, all those tubes and smokestacks. I wonder how it all works. It's interesting how life goes on around it. It looks like a new parking lot right next to the building and that car is driving on the road so close to it. I guess it is still safe enough to stand up. The factory reminds me of the aesthetic of a video game called Machinarium, with the complicated pipes, old and rusty metal, abandonment, antique look.
If you like point and click puzzle games, I r3commend it. It even has a version for Android and iOS. A few puzzles are unfair to figure out like a board game puzzle, so I cheated on those. But I love the main character and atmosphere.
great footage. Very nice job.
Awesome footage, would you mind if I use some clips?
🎵out in Bethlehem they're building time, handing out forms, standing in line🎵
Tell Billy Joel I said hello.
Both political parties left this remarkable time in history to ruin, and turned their backs on the coal and steel cultures that remain in the fabric of the local culture. We hope to continue to rebuild this area and recharge with brick & mortar technologies to build a clean, affordable environment. Thank you, Andrew, for touching the past in this compelling way and bringing it to us.
Very good video and flight!
I visited this mill in July 1990; it was part of program for a comparative study visit to the U.S.by a group of Asian journalists specializing in environmental journalism. The mill was still producing at the time, the management even invited us to have lunch at one of the workers' canteens. I was really surprised to see how luxurious the meals, with a lot of meat and fresh fruits offered to the workers. I thought at the time that was one most possible reason why the mill's business was fast going into an incurable loss. The workers ate the profits away in a manner they might have not reckoned was taking them down into oblivion. I think the workers there should've learned from the austere way their competitors in Japan and Korea had taken the benefits from being workers at their respective mills.
Healthy workers are arguably a lot more productive than those who are starving...
Taking care of the workers with good meals and plenty of water in a hot ass environment is bad now?
Probably everyone here wants this place preserved and opened up for tours
Very nice!! I would have been a little nervous coming do close!!
This place saved us during the war sad to see it in this state
Pennsylvania looks rough, but the Iron Range of Northern Minnesota has deteriorated in at a similar rate. One of the Ore Docks in Duluth hasn't been used in quite some time. Shrubs and bushes can be seen growing up from the approach bridge. Numerous former mine pits have been abandoned for years with trucks and buildings left sitting where they were the day they closed the gates for good. Even the rail lines into the loading years are still there, buried in the weeds. Most of the oldest pits have had old equipment thrown into them and have dangerously high levels of toxins in them as they have filled with water over time. It's a mess and U.S. Steel, who owns most of what's left, cannot afford to clean some of the sights up. The ore that made a significant amount of steel for Military use in WWII came from there, and it boomed, but it's slowly busted. Virginia, MN is still growing and pits such as the Thunderbird Mine are expanding (US Highway 53 had to be rerouted over an old pit to do so).
The Bethlehem Mill is a greater wonder and achievement than the pyramids of Egypt
Beautiful
this place catched my eyes when i was on my way to bthlem, looks terrifying too, this video its good btw
we must build this country back up !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Funny how the rich spend millions on building but when they're done with you &their buildings no one says tear down. Just left to rott.
Let's jump start it. Parking lots are in good shape at least, let's go.
except 9/10th of the supporting buildings and hardware are gone.
glad they never tore it down. Glad to see it still standing Unlike all the rest
Years ago when my husband was in the steel industry, they wanted us to relocate to Bethlehem, PA. Just a few short years later, they closed this plant. So glad I refused to move.
My late father worked at the Bethlehem plant until his passing on March 8, 1986, he was off that day. He was hit by a car at night a mile from our house in Upper Macungie Township west of Allentown. Where are you from?
Cool video, thank you.
Iron Age Relic should be preserved maybe...
Just a shame
My next stop.. Love it bro! Where you took off from?
thats the sadest thing i'v seen in a long time. the clash,sraight to hell boy, the song goes "and the steel mill's rust"
Sand island was my childhood for a few years
awesome!!
Such a rotten shame
I would love to have band photos taken there
Great video 👍
WOW what a huge mill, I am working in a steel mill in Hamburg Germany. It’s a shame that your politicians didn't save this mill and all the good jobs.
This is arguably a good example of how capitalist economics really functions. That mill in Pennsylvania in the United States became a dinosaur because there was technology that was used by steel producers in South Korea, Japan, India, and China that made steel production a lot cheaper. It's a bit like a propeller plane trying to fly faster than a jet.
Hopefully the plant stays preserved in this state forever. That steel will only last so long before it becomes a danger to visitors. I just hope it last for an eternity
It isn't abandoned. The plant has been preserved as a historic site and included into the adjacent park.
The industrial revolution is what made America Great. Seeing places like this tears at the very heart of working Americans. NAFTA was the worst thing that could have happened to America. This is sad beyond words.
this hurts me to see such a waste those old brick buildings still have potential. all the steel there can be recycled. the good part is that rear parking lot looks clean as if were new.its sad see that we have let America like this
I saw something like this in downtown Youngstown in the 1990s. It was surreal.
omg my grandpa worked there in 1925
Is this factory still there today or is it all gone? if it is still standing could it be fired back up today or is it in to bad of shape to do that.
Assuming that by some miracle the photographed still mill is somehow operable today it would be a bit like using a computer made in 1995 to do work in 2020. The mill is a symbol of old technology. It has by default become a museum, a reminder of an era that has passed.
Would love to know the name of this song....Anybody?
Sad...
At 0:30 you can see an electrical pylon with the wires cut. Guys in the Mon Valley used to try to slice up electrical wires. Sometimes they got copper. Sometimes they got killed.
These mills were inefficient and probably couldn't be brought up to Clean Air Act 1970 standards. Clean Air Act 1990 standards are even tougher.
Unless we're going to pay people peanuts and breathe dirty air? Forgetaboutit.
Lot of good quality steel just sitting there doing nothing. Could be scrapped.
Who is going to pay for the Asbestos Remediation?
Once you ship all your money to china threw walmart ect you will work for peanuts if they will even give you that. I can't believe it, how mutch of your country are you guy's loose before you realise it?
Jamal Labarge it survived until 1995. They had actually improved thier furnaces and production quite a bit. Unfortunately, the company started destroying itself around the late 70s and never recovered
It would be wonderful to preserve it as a museum.
That would likely cost money that in this economic downturn would be very hard to find. Hopefully it has not become a place where addicts and vagrants congregate.
Sad to see it just rusting away.
It's absolutely disgusting what happened to steel factories in this country..greed killed it!.
By the time we got a President that gave a damn it was too late . I'm very grateful to Wilbur Ross and Lakshimi Mittal for saving our Cleveland works .
The American steel industry for all intents and purposes was in cardiac arrest in the 1970s. It was not going to come back. It died a slow and painful death. Look at places like Baltimore, Maryland; Gary, Indiana; and Youngstown, Ohio. They will never be steel towns again.
@@KSmall109CAB This America , we don't quit . We never give up
@@johndouglas5712 I wish you were right, John. However, this country has quit on places like Lima, Ohio and Bessemer, Alabama. The US towns that were once steel towns will never be steel towns again. Unless the leadership of those communities come up with effective reinvention strategies they will die a slow and painful death, much like a rotting mansion that gives way to decay.
KSmall109CAB Lima Ohio has America’s biggest tank plant . We got the people and the skill . The tariffs are helping . Nobody did a damn thing for our Steel industry. Wilbur Ross is a hero in Cleveland. He saved our last mill and it’s going full blast
is it okay if I use some of this film for a school project?
Undexo as long as credit is given to me sure!
AndrewChilicki will do! Thank you so much!
What caused it to shut down?
They couldn't compete with foreign steel. Also, they didn't invest in the continuous casting process.
In the Baltimore old location they took it down and put in warehouse’s in Amazon is the Biggest at least they have job making ability Usa steel build the world in the 19 th century
Looks like 4 furnaces an a rolling mill not sure what else I'm seeing probley some storage An a shipping area. Not sure what they were making it all from I didn't see any are that looked like an scrap intake area
Aqua Boss it used to be much larger. It used to be five miles long. This just happens to be the most intact area. Thier used to be even more in this area long ago
It's not abandoned. It's a museum! Visit it!
How long until that’s torn down?
600joe won’t be. It’s a historical landmark.
Most of it was already demolished. There were stone buildings that were left intact for historical reasons. But, the Saucon Mill and Basic Oxygen Furnace are gone. Most of what you see are the "blast furnaces." They used hot air to melt iron. That was some heat! My grandfather and uncles worked there during WWII. A great place to grow up.
I build roads and bridges. All the steel needed for our projects is made in Minnesota, Indiana, Texas, or Utah.
America makes 100 million tons of steel a year. You people need to do a little homework.
I want to climb this thing
please be sure you have your FCC license, it's quick and cheap to get. If you're going to post evidence online. Just a heads up.
I have an FAA Part 107 Pilot License as well as got permission from an employee to fly that day
@@chilvisuals Thanks for being responsible with your drones!
It's now a museum, and the other half of it is a stupid casino
Why the music
Hi Andrew, what an awesome video! Did you have to get permission from the steel mill to fly the drone around there? Did you use a filter on the camera because the exposure looks great.
Did not use any filters on the drone and being that it is abandoned, I just flew it from an adjacent parking lot while visiting.
Awesome, man! Yeah, I'm headed out there next weekend and was trying to see if I could get some shots. Looks like the steel mill is in the 5 mile radius of an airport but there's a park not too far away I was hoping I could launch from and at least get an aerial shot from a distance.
I was wondering the same thing. If you go by the B4UFly app, most of the Allentown/Bethlehem area is off limits.
Hey there, just a follow up, I ended up going out there and didn't feel like wondering about the airport thing so I parked at a skate park a little ways away and flew from there. It was nowhere near the quality of this video here but I just used the scene as an opener flying towards it and the rest of my piece was on the ground. I will post that in a few days. Great place to visit either way!
MAN that place is big..the old ARMCO steel plant (closed-down-also) in Kansas City doesnt even compare in size..i hope Pres Trump can get these viable places going or replaced with modern stuff so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!
Jesus man, Trump is all talk. Stop beleiving on a person that is only interested in feeding his ego. He'll never be abled to restart Bethtlehem, or any huge industrial project like that. He should be creating jobs in alternative energy sector, in exploration, in technology, etc.
The size this place is nothing compared to sparrows point Maryland. It has been knocked down for the past five years but I’m sure you could find some pictures of the place online. It was once the biggest steel mill in the world
Chad Simmons
If it doesn’t make a profit why revive it. We must learn to move in innovate. Sure looking at the past is good and all but the future is much more important.
Why bethlehem steel close??
The plant was an antique. Nearly all of it had been built before the Depression. A fair bit of it dated from the 19th century. Recycled scrap (Nucor) came to dominate the steel industry. BS could not compete in price with Asian steel. Too many white collar guys doing too little work to justify their pay grade. When the Cold War wound down, and the interstate system was pretty much finished, the firm marched to bankruptcy.
I worked for BS nearly 50 years ago. The blue collar wage rates were decent but not phenomenal. But the benefits included health care for one's entire family, full defined benefit pension after 30 years, 13 weeks of paid vacation every 5th year starting in one's 20th year. These benefits struck me as weirdly generous, and I bet they helped sink the company.
bam gito greedy upper management
In Russia such old plants are still working and polluting the environment so much...
they were built to last centuries,unless someone tears them down first.
what a pity to see such a icon of America's history wasting away .
do you know if it's possible to get in there? asking for a friend ;)
My man. If u EVER decide to go ahead... Find me!! This is soemthing I'd risk the fines for!! You could spend hours roaming and climbing around this place! I'm sure it's dangerous but that's what makes it an adventure!
Also. Yes it is possible. There was a certain someone that I know that jumped from the sky bridge to one of the platforms. From there, an adventure could have begun.
When you hear a tiktok song from a video in 2016
why was bethlaham steel abandoned tho
Bethlehem Steel went filed for bankruptcy in 2001 and subsequently went out of business in 2003. Efficient assets were purchased by International Steel Group in 2003, but this plant wasn't included because it wasn't modern and efficient.
When corporate tax rates get jacked to over 50%, when it comes time to reinvest in a major physical plant improvement the numbers stop working, and only necessary repairs got done. The plant becomes less and less competitive and by the 70s electric arc furnaces and processing scrap and new EPA regs made plants like this wholely uncompetitive in a rapidly globalizing steel markey
Sorry to see places like this shut down, but it must have been a dreary and dangerous place to work.
I worked there early 1970s. There was a good culture of safety. It wasn't too dreary back then. I made about $175/week, about $930 in today's money. The health and retirement benefits were good. The shop I worked always did 2 shifts (I worked steady swing shift) and sometimes a night shift as well. But 15 years later, it closed for good. The guys told that the technology was out of date. We worked with machines that had been made in the 20s and 30s. Mack Trucks did what we did, but used injection molding, which resulted in a product requiring little or not further machinging. A rival forge shop 15 miles away used compressed air instead of steam, and could do all the smaller jobs that we did, but for a lot less money. They were nonunion as well. Continuous casting was the wave of the future, but the Bethlehem plant simply could not adopt that.
Hardly dreary with all the thousands of people, the fire & the pride in their work. Not dreary, exciting, blood pumping good work.
Absolutely not true about 3 people dying a day. What crap.
This is a very beautiful and touching caption of a very ugly construction.
They should have converted to gas furnaces because free trade would eventually put them out of business.
Whats with the non-industrial music? Blue Oyser Cult's "Hot Rails To Hell" would have been more appopriate!
Looks like it would be worth a fortune in scrap steel, bricks and etc.
Some day all that steel will be on someone's car.
Or perhaps the manhole cover on a highway...
The Casino is pretty cool.
Shame. They should cut it down and recycle it...
cheeboib ain’t happening . It’s being preserved
My Father worked there from 54' till it closed. I remember going to work with him.. He had passed away, and I wasn't even born yet.
I miss those days.. He was born in 52, and worked there till he was 8 years old. I went to work with him while I was still in my Mothers womb..
I miss those days so bad..
Selg uesa
Steampunkers wet dream
gj kid
China's Steel was Cheaper 🐥
it’s ok ... we can look forward to a LOT more of this now that communist joe is going to give us all universal incomes 🥴🤕😒
America is dying.
Sad but true. Her heart has been sold away long ago.
Big scrap pile.