How It Works: Outdoor Artifact Demo

Join the National Museum of Industrial History as we fire up our growing collection of operational outdoor artifacts.  Visitors will learn the history of several historic machines, then see them in motion.  Demonstrations will include the TUG, a former Bethlehem Steel vehicle built from an aircraft pushback tractor.  It was used as a rubber tired locomotive inside the mill.  Also running will be a 40,000 pound mining hoist from 1908, various pumps, and manually operated machines.  The tour will take place in the future Museum Park, providing a great “before” look at the area before it is transformed.

The walking surfaces are gravel, so please be sure to wear appropriate footwear.  In the event of inclimate weather, the tour will move inside, demonstrating the operational artifacts inside the Museum, those being the Corliss steam engine, metalworking lathe, textile punch card machine, and a few manually operated pieces.  Please note that these are historic machines.  While usually reliable, there is always a chance that mechanical difficulties may force a change of plans.

This special tour is $5 in addition to normal Museum admission.