Doyle Introduces Bill to Establish a National Park Service Steel Industry Historic Site in the Mon Valley

Washington, DC - Today, U.S. Representative Mike Doyle (PA-14) introduced H.R. 5500, legislation to preserve parts of the former U.S. Steel Homestead Works and educate the public about its importance.  H.R. 5500 would establish a Steel Industry National Historic Site in Braddock, Munhall, and Swissvale as part of the National Park System. This National Historic site would include the location of the Battle of Homestead in Munhall, as well as important artifacts of the nation’s steel industry like the Carrie Furnace complex in Swissvale and Rankin and the Hot Metal Bridge in Rankin and Munhall.

"I want to make sure this nation and the world always remember the sacrifices made by the workers who labored in the mills in and around Pittsburgh," Congressman Doyle said today.  "I have been working with the Steel Industry Heritage Corporation for many years to preserve the Battle of Homestead site, Carrie Furnaces 6 and 7, the Hot Metal Bridge, and the history of those who toiled there.  I believe that our nation has an obligation to preserve these unique historical assets, and this legislation is the next step in that process."

The Homestead Works played an important role in America’s economic and industrial history.  It  was one of the largest and most productive steel mills in the world 100 years ago.  The Homestead Works and other steel mills nearby made the United States the economic and military superpower it is today.  As a result, Pittsburgh is still known for its steel industry around the world. 

The history of the Homestead Works is much bigger than that of Pittsburgh or even southwestern Pennsylvania, however – it reflects national trends in industrial development, scientific innovation and technological advancement, our labor and social history, our country’s diverse ethnic heritage, and the work ethic that characterizes this nation. 

The most well-known incident in Homestead’s history is the Battle of Homestead, where in 1892 steel workers repulsed a force of Pinkerton detectives sent in to break their strike.  More than a hundred years later, the Battle of Homestead still stands as one of the most compelling stories in the long history of the labor movement in the United States. 

The Homestead Works’ Carrie Furnaces 6 and 7 are also sites of national historical significance.  They are rare examples of early production techniques and turn-of-the-century technological advances.  These relics are the only remaining pre-World War II era blast furnaces left in the Pittsburgh area, and they represent some of the most important technological accomplishments of the American steel industry. 

The National Park Service recognizes the historical significance of these sites and has recommended that they be preserved, in a National Historic Site, for future generations. 

Congressman Doyle has been working with the non-profit Steel Industry Heritage Corporation for a number of years with local community leaders and other state and federal officials to preserve the history of the U.S. steel industry and the communities in southwestern Pennsylvania that were inseparably linked to it.  In 1996, Congress designated the 8 counties of southwestern Pennsylvania as the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area.  In 2006, the Carrie Furnaces site in Swissvale and Rankin was designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL) by the National Park Service - joining fewer than 3,000 such sites across the entire country.  

Similar legislation has been introduced in the Senate (S. 199).