1910 Bethlehem Steel Strike
Bethlehem, Northampton County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
In February, 1910, over 9,000 steelworkers went on strike over wages, overtime, and work conditions. A striker was shot and killed here during hostilities that ensued. The subsequent federal investigation substantiated workers' claims and contributed to industry reforms.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
In February 1910, more than 9,000 workers walked off the job at Bethlehem Steel, protesting low wages, forced overtime, and brutal conditions in one of America's industrial giants. The confrontation turned deadly when a striker was shot and killed amid the unrest. The strike failed to win immediate demands, but the federal investigation that followed confirmed the workers' grievances and helped push the steel industry toward reform.
Why it matters
The Bethlehem strike was an early flashpoint in the long struggle to humanize American heavy industry, feeding the Progressive-era momentum that would eventually curb the twelve-hour day and the seven-day week in steel.
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Nearby & related markers
Bethlehem Steel Plant
Bethlehem, PA · est. 2014
Headquartered in Bethlehem, this plant became one of the most important iron and steel makers in the nation. It began rolling railroad rails as the Bethlehem Iron Co. in 1863, and by 1873 was forging armor plate and guns for the U.S. Navy, going on to arm the Allies through both World Wars. Its structural steel raised iconic skyscrapers and long-span bridges before the great works finally fell silent in 1995.
Henry Noll
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Samuel Wetherill (1821-1890)
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A chemist and inventor as well as a Civil War officer, Samuel Wetherill devised a process in 1852 for extracting white zinc oxide straight from zinc ore. The next year he founded the Lehigh Zinc Company, whose plant stood here, pioneering the American manufacture of zinc spelter and rolled zinc sheet. His work helped make the Lehigh Valley an early powerhouse of the country's metals industry.
John Fritz (1822-1913)
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John Fritz was one of the towering figures of 19th-century American ironmaking, serving as superintendent of Johnstown's Cambria Iron Works in the 1850s before spending three decades at the Bethlehem Iron Company. There he pioneered the mass production of steel rails and, later, the heavy armor plate that girded the modern U.S. Navy. A trustee of Lehigh University, he endowed its engineering laboratory, tying industry to education.