How did a swampy peninsula on the Patapsco River get picked as the site for a revolutionary, state-of-the-art steel mill? What was it like to live and work in a self-contained company town? Did Bethlehem Steel help the Allies win World War II? And, by the way, just how complicated is it to make steel, anyway? This episode, we rewind to the origins of Sparrows Point and trace the growth of what would become the biggest steel mill in the world.

<p>How did a swampy peninsula on the Patapsco River get picked as the site for a revolutionary, state-of-the-art steel mill? What was it like to live and work in a self-contained company town? Did Bethlehem Steel help the Allies win World War II? And, by the way, just how complicated is it to make steel, anyway? This episode, we rewind to the origins of Sparrows Point and trace the growth of what would become the biggest steel mill in the world.</p>

In 1887, it was an isolated stretch of marshland on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay. By 1958, it was the biggest steel mill in the world. It went bankrupt in 2001. And by 2015, it was a pile of demolished rubble. Sparrows Point is a story of capitalism, labor unions, race, gender, civil rights, pride, and hubris.  It’s the story of American steel.

<p>In 1887, it was an isolated stretch of marshland on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay. By 1958, it was the biggest steel mill in the world. It went bankrupt in 2001. And by 2015, it was a pile of demolished rubble. Sparrows Point is a story of capitalism, labor unions, race, gender, civil rights, pride, and hubris. &nbsp;It&rsquo;s the story of American steel.</p>

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