Rivers of Steel

Rivers of Steel, originally known as the Steel Industry Heritage Corporation, is involved in preserving historic buildings, locations, and artifacts, as well as designing and placing historic designation markers. Preservation projects include the Bost Building in Homestead and Rices Landing in Brownsville.

Rivers of Steel's Archives is a window into the communities that comprise our seven-county Heritage Area, and the archives exist to collect, conserve, and preserve their past. These diverse collections showcase various aspects of the area's industrial, cultural, and ethnic heritage through a multitude of artifacts, documents, and photographic and audio-visual materials.

Cultural conservation is a coordinated approach to protecting the living traditions of the Rivers of Steel National and State Heritage Area. Cultural conservation aims to foster intercultural awareness and respect, as well as promote the appreciation of southwestern Pennsylvania's cultural heritage.

Through living traditions, skills such as metalworking and needlework, and art forms such as instrumental music, song, dance, crafts, and storytelling, are helping to preserve the places and values that have played vital roles in their development. These traditions serve as symbols of identity in many communities and are important sources of local pride.

Rivers of Steel has conducted a documentary study of cultural traditions in Pittsburgh and the surrounding industrial communities that comprise the Rivers of Steel National and State Heritage Area.

Fieldworkers observed and recorded cultural activities and asked residents for suggestions about conserving the region's heritage. These efforts resulted in 29 field reports, over 6,000 slides, 3,500 black-and-white photographs, and 750 hours of audiotaped interviews. These materials are on file in the Steel Industry Heritage Corporation's archives.