Saturday, May 20, 2023
A celebration of the area's musical legacy, Homestead Live Fridays has been adding an extra sizzle to the summer since 2019. During the series' inaugural year, Colonel Eagleburger's Highstepping Goodtime Band brought energy to the Avenue with their marching performance.
Excitement on the Avenue

You know it's almost summer when we announce the return of Homestead Live Fridays!

Now in its fourth year, the monthly performance series has become a destination activity for Homestead residents and their neighbors throughout Pittsburgh. The season kicks off on May 26—read about what is happening next week and how the choice to focus on live music is positively impacting the community!

Just as there are multitudes of ways to experience Homestead Live Fridays, the Carrie Blast Furnaces offer opportunities to explore the site through different perspectives.

Recently, educators with the Pennsylvania State Education Association stopped by for an end-of-year immersive celebration that introduced them to three different ways we interpret the landmark for students.

And now you can experience the site from a new perspective too! The Black Experience at the Carrie Furnaces is a special, new, one-hour tour that sifts through the history of the Carrie Furnaces through the lens of a pivotal resource—the Black workers who began working there during the years of the Great Migration. Check it out Sundays this June.

If you have time this Sunday, we welcome you to stop by for the free Mini Greens 2 opening reception at Carrie, which will reveal a new art installation. There's also a Photo Safari opportunity, an Arts & Grounds Tour, and a blacksmithing workshop that day.

Later in May, we're hosting the first of only two Sculptural Aluminum Casting sessions happening in 2023. These three-day workshops are a great follow-up for those who've been introduced to the process through the single-day Aluminum Casting Session or the Doodle Bowl Experience. That said, the make and take workshops are not a prerequisite!

Then in early June, we'll be hosting our first Hooks & Hairpins blacksmithing workshop at the Machine Shop in Rices Landing, located in the northeastern corner of Greene County. For folks in the southern part of the Rivers of Steel Heritage Area, this workshop offers a closer destination—at a working foundry that is also a National Historic Landmark!

Oh, and if you'd like to see an amazing blacksmithing exhibition, #366 Hooks, be sure to stop by for the Open House at Touchstone Center for Crafts on June 3!

Thanks, and we hope you can join us for a good time in the coming days!
Members of the Pittsburgh Swing Dance Community show off their moves at Golden Age Beer Co. while the Boilermaker Jazz Band performs on a Friday evening in May.
EVENT PREVIEW
Homestead Live Fridays
Saturday, May 26, 2023, 6:00 – 10:00 p.m., Homestead Business District
Homestead Live Fridays returns in 2023 with a new season of events. In this article, Gita Michulka shares what's happening on the final Friday of this month and how the live music and performance series has positively impacted local businesses and the community.
Educators with the Pennsylvania State Education Association walk through the Ore Yard during their mini-tour of the Carrie Blast Furnaces, on of three activities offered during their open house experience in May 11, 2023.
FEATURED STORY
PSEA Educators Take a Field Trip to the Carrie Furnaces
As the 2022 – 2023 school year comes to a close, educators with the Pennsylvania State Education Association visited Carrie for a special hands-on open house, complete with a reception, tour, and introductions to Rivers of Steel graffiti and metal arts workshops. Check out this recap by Jordan Snowden.
The Steelworker mural helps tell the story of Black workers at Carrie.
FEATURED TOUR
The Black Experience at the Carrie Furnaces
Sundays in June at the Carrie Blast Furnaces
Join Rivers of Steel this June for a special tour of the Carrie Blast Furnaces. This one-hour tour sifts through the history of the Carrie Furnaces through the lens of a pivotal resource—the Black migrants who traveled from the South and created a career path for themselves and future generations, amassing seniority and skills in some of the most difficult roles at the mill. Through the stories of changemakers like Cumberland "Cap" Posey and everyday workers like union officer John Hughey, this tour paints a picture of life inside—and outside—the mill in the 20th century.
Mini Greens 2, an art installation comprised of 1,500 tiny steelworker jackets, will be opening at the Carrie Blast Furnaces on May 21, 2023, at noon.
EXHIBITION OPENING
Mini Greens 2
Sunday, May 21, 2023, 12:00 – 3:00 p.m., Carrie Blast Furnaces
Join Rivers of Steel at the Carrie Furnaces for the opening reception of Mini Greens 2, a new art installation by Bradford Mumpower and Latika Sewell. Drop in for a free public reception from 12:00 to 3:00 p.m. and chat with the artists.
PHOTOGRAPHY SESSION
Photo Safari
Sunday, May 21, 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., Carrie Blast Furnaces
The interplay of light and seasonality at the Carrie Furnaces offers endless perspectives of this industrial muse. Take inspiration from the wide vistas or the delicate details at this National Historic Landmark site. Choose your own adventure on this photo safari!
METAL ARTS WORKSHOP
Sculptural Aluminum Casting
A three-day workshop, May 30 – June 1, 4:00 – 8:30 p.m., Carrie Blast Furnaces
Learn to cast aluminum in three dimensions! This workshop introduces the process used to create three-dimensional sculptural forms in cast aluminum—patternmaking, mold-making and casting. Create small- to medium-sized castings and discuss various surface treatments and finishing options. Bring your imagination!
METAL ARTS WORKSHOP
Blacksmithing at the Machine Shop: Hooks & Hairpins
Sunday, June 4, 12:00 – 3:00 p.m., W.A. Young & Sons Foundry and Machine Shop
Learn to hammer hot metal at the Machine Shop! This three-hour introductory workshop is a great way to explore the art of blacksmithing and create something unique. Participants will learn the basics of forging steel and use essential blacksmithing tools to create a steel hook or hairpin to take home.
THINGS TO DO IN THE RIVERS OF STEEL NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA
Open House at Touchstone Center for Crafts
Saturday, June 3, 2023, 11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Farmington, PA
This free, family-friendly event is the day to visit Touchstone. Learn about their seasonal workshops and date nights. Tour the studios. Watch artist demonstrations. Shop artist pop-up shops. View gallery exhibitions. Enjoy live music and hands-on activities for adults and kids alike. No registration required. Food and beverages will be available for purchase.

Rivers of Steel's Tip: Don't miss out on the #366 Hooks exhibition, which is sponsored by Artist-Blacksmith’s Association of North America. If you aren’t already "hooked" on blacksmithing, you will be after viewing this display of unique forged hooks created by Matt Jenkins of Cloverdale Forge in Manitoba, Canada. Jenkins proves there is no limit to the innovation and execution of making something as "simple" as a hook. On view through June 30.
Help preserve our region’s industrial and cultural heritage! Your tax-deductible contribution will help ensure that Rivers of Steel can continue to offer vital, engaging, community-based arts, education, and heritage programs for the residents of southwestern Pennsylvania and beyond.
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