National Museum of
Industrial History
The National Museum of Industrial History (NMIH) in Bethlehem, Pa., is dedicated to preserving America’s rich industrial heritage. It is located in a 100-year-old former Bethlehem Steel facility on the largest private brownfield in America. The Museum is home to exciting exhibits, engaging programs, and amazing history.
Our thanks to the NMIH staff members who participated in this project:
Kara Mohsinger, President & CEO
Amber Emory, (former) Director of Education and Community Partnerships
Glenn Koehler, (former) Director of Marketing & Public Relations
Emily Marchello, Collections Manager
Megan Pildis, Vice President of Business Development
Andria Zaia, Curator of Collections
Initial Crisis
So beginning that week, things day by day started to kind of increase some of the anxiety with the staff… it became pretty clear that by the time the board meeting came around at 10:00 on Friday, everybody in the room pretty much knew that we were going to be closing down.
Kara Mohsinger, August 12, 2020
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Since we were a still kind of in the startup phase of a nonprofit world, and we were we were still trying to gain that financial security…I felt like this was something that could just blow us completely out of the water.
Kara Mohsinger, August 12, 2020
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Changed Nature
of work
It’s been tricky from a collections management standpoint just because I don’t have access to our database from off site…when I go in, I kind of do a bulk search, like what information do I need to pull from work to then be able to respond to these people off site?
Emily Marchello, August 12, 2020
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In place of not being able to do that [storytelling with objects]…I found myself doing that with other media, so I was doing the same stuff that I typically do, but I’m using now different technology or tools. But I surprised myself. And I was like, damn, you know, I can hang. I can do this.
Andria Zaia, August 12, 2020
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On Digital Collections
& Programming
[W]e’ll be able to have a broader reach and more accessibility to people who are all over the world…But I don’t know if I think this is actually going to change the way museums are in the long run.
Emily Marchello, August 12, 2020
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So I think I haven’t quite figured out how to encompass the grandeur of the museum and just like the amazing ability to be in contact with artifacts with virtual authenticity.
Amber Emory, August 12, 2020
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What do
you fear most?
What inspires
you Most?
Reflections
We had a roughly 80 percent dip in our earned revenues. And from what I understand, that is about average for what a lot of the museums saw last year. So without support from the public in America, it’s kind of hard to operate like that. We do see our numbers rising, but it’s not going to be something that happens overnight.
It’s going to take us a couple of years, I think, to recoup from where we were.
Kara Mohsinger
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I think what the big message I would want our visitors to know is that we really do need the public to support the arts. Without your support, we really wouldn’t be open and I think that there would be a lot missing from the landscape.
Kara Mohsinger
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