donation to the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area supports the projects and programs that preserve Southwestern's Pennsylvania's rich industrial and cultural heritage for future generations.
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Save the Dates
Hammer-In at Rices LandingApril 20, 2013  Babushka & Hard Hats TourJune 8, July 13, Aug. 10, Aug. 31, Oct. 19  Carrie Blast Furnace Self-Paced ToursApril 27, May 25, June 15, July 6, Aug. 31, Sept. 21 Oct. 5  Carrie Blast Furnace Guided Tours10 AM Saturdays June-October 10 AM Fridays June-August
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Thank you to our Volunteers
A special thanks to all of our volunteers at Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area for your help in 2012. For those who worked on the Carrie Furnaces site or led tours of the blast furnace complex; those who worked in our archives department or who helped in our educational programs; those who helped special events or filled docent needs - your help makes Rivers of Steel more successful and the achievements of this organization are all part of your hard work and continued commitment! See you in 2013! 
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Rivers of Steel
Wants You! 
If you're not afraid of getting your hands a little dirty, then think about joining our organization as a volunteer!Our 2013 wish list includes: * fence and brush pile removal * clearing trees and filling holes in the ore yard * installing railings and barriers * repairing or demolishing falling platforms and scaffolding * cleaning up junk from inside and around buildings * painting if you are interested in volunteering, contact
Angie Morini or call 412.464.4020, 21 
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Rivers of Steel receives $100,000 grant to help reduce carbon footprint, add interpretative amenities, to steel heritage sites
Recently announced by State Sen. Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area will be receiving a grant from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources for eco-friendly projects at some of their historic sites. In part, the projects will provide alternative energy and enable the organization to reduce their carbon footprint as well as become more sustainable. 
Continuing its initial foray into the off-grid field that began with the installation of solar panels at the Carrie Blast Furnace site in Rankin by locally-owned sustainable power generation business ZeroFossil Energy Outfitters out of Munhall this past summer, RSNHA has similar plans for its other heritage sites. Currently the Carrie Blast Furnace site, which produced iron for U.S. Steel's Homestead Works until the mid-80s, has a solar-powered energy source which is used for interpretive and guidance lighting among other things.
The DCNR grant will help fund alternative energy capabilities at two of their other sites - the Historic Pump House & Water Tower, located in The Waterfront and The Bost Building, visitor center for RSNHA, in Homestead.
"This grant allows Rivers of Steel to take full advantage of emerging technologies in green energy, and by incorporating them into our facilities we will reduce our carbon footprint and at the same time reduce our operating costs for lighting these historic landmarks," said August R. Carlino, President & CEO of Rivers of Steel Heritage Corporation. The three-year project is set to be initiated in the next few months.
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DCNR Grant Funding will also cover Historic Pump House trailhead improvements 
Part of the Department of Conservation & Natural Resources grant funding, recently announced by State Sen Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, will also go toward site improvements at the Historic Pump House, a trailhead for the Great Allegheny Passage. Improvements include paving of the pump house parking lot to handle the additional traffic at the historic site since the opening of the Pittsburgh to Washington, DC, bike path through The Waterfront in 2011. The trail will be completed through downtown Pittsburgh later this year.
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The latest gallery exhibit featuring a Pittsburgh steel heritage icon is now open at The Bost Building, 623 E. 8th Ave., Homestead, and visitor center for Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area.
For more than 125 years, Jones and Laughlin Steel was one of the major symbols of industrialized Pittsburgh. Using photographs, archival documents, artifacts and personal stories, Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area tells the story of  an incredible company and the region it helped define as the "Steel Making Capital of the World."
Dominating the landscape of the city, the history of "J&L" spanned the years from the development and expansion of iron-making in the 1850s, through the boom of the early 20th century and finally to the decline of the industry in the 1980s.
The mill lived at the heart of the region's blue collar persona: strong, determined, persistent in presence and willing to adapt to survive.
The exhibit is open 10 AM to 4 PM Monday through Friday except on Jan. 21 and Feb. 18, when The Bost Building is closed for federal holidays. For a docent-led group tour, email [email protected] or call 412-464-4020, ext. 32. For more information about visiting the exhibit, click here.
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Kevin Scanlon and Keith Clouse: Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area's 2012 Volunteers of the Year
Rivers of Steel National Heritage announced its 2012 Volunteer of the Year - Kevin Scanlon of McCandless, and Keith Clouse of O'Hara Township - in December. "These two men exemplify the whole group of volunteers that we have," said RSNHA President and CEO August R. Carlino. "Their help in our work and dedication to our mission is extraordinary and we are most grateful to Kevin, Keith and all the others for what they do."
Both spent countless hours providing maintenance work at the Carrie blast furnace site and leading tours of the Carrie
 | | From left, RSNHA CEO August R. Carlino, Kevin Scanlon, Keith Clouse and RSNHA Board Chair Frank Reed |
Furnaces. Scanlon and Clouse both fit in their volunteering around full-time jobs. " I feel that it is critical to preserve an important site like Carrie Furnace for people to be able to see close up what was once so common in Western Pennsylvania," said Scanlon.
"I volunteer to help preserve Carrie because this is the last opportunity to make it happen."
Clouse agreed. "I have had a long time interest in the steel industry. It is part of the fabric of every person that grew up in Pittsburgh. Working on preserving the Carrie Furnaces is a way to help preserve that legacy." Both have plans to help RSNHA with preservation projects in 2013 at the Carrie blast furnace site. "Kevin and Keith are tremendous volunteers and the work they conduct for Rivers of Steel at Carrie Furnaces is invaluable," said Carlino. Past recipients include Marsha Resinol, Mike & Dee Boytim, Jim Kapusta, George "Bly" Blystone, Larry Brown and Rick Rowlands.
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