Bethlehem GIS Project

The Geographic Information Systems (GIS) project is comprised of the early twentieth-century Sanborn fire insurance maps, Sholes' Directory of the Bethlehems, 1900-1901, 1900-1902 Bethlehem Steel employee lists, a contemporary database of streets, and selected information from the 1900 Census report. The result is a geospatial presentation of turn of the century Bethlehem population and a context for more specialized visualization of workers in the steel industry.

This project was made possible by a 2007 grant awarded to Lehigh University’s Library and Technology Services awarded by the federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds administered by the Office of Commonwealth Libraries.

Quality Control Documentation

Download the 254 page Quality Control Documentation (PDF) that covers the assessment of data, issues of quality control, and detailed analysis of matches between database records.

Database Background

The map is a composite of over 100 Sanborn maps of the Bethlehem area. The Sanborn maps were provided by the National Canal Museum, and were taken from an atlas owned by the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, which is now in the museum's collection. Apparently, Bethlehem Steel made the atlas by binding together maps which were not all from the same year. According to the date of the individual maps, the majority of them were created in the early 1920s. These map images were placed upon a geodatabase of the streets of the Bethlehem area, provided by the Historic Bethlehem Partnership.

The georeferenced points selectable on the map received address data from tables of the associated database.

The Bethlehem area consisted of five separate municipalities, which merged into the City of Bethlehem in 1917. During this time, many street names were changed throughout the area, especially in South Bethlehem. The GIS system will display an address at its location in 1900, even though the Sanborn map may give a different street name.

The Bethlehem Area Public Library supplied microfilm of the Sholes' Directory of the Bethlehems, 1900-1901 from their holdings. The microfilm was digitized, and transcribed into a Microsoft EXCEL spreadsheet. This information was added into a table on a MySQL database. While in the database, the records were changed only to remove abbreviations or correct known spelling mistakes. This was done to facilitate the use of database searches. The digital versions of the pages have been linked to the database records to allow the user to view an image of the primary source of each database record.

The four documents regarding the employees of Bethlehem Steel were provided by the Hagley Museum and Archives, and similarly digitized into a text format and transcribed into corresponding tables on the database. The data in these records have not been altered, although a separate guide to known Bethlehem Steel department codes is being made for the Manufacturing Department Employees (1902). Like the Sanborn directories above, links have been made to images of the primary sources. Please note that these records seem to be solely regarding workers in Bethlehem Steel; upper management is excluded.

The data from the United States Census was generated by finding everyone living in a household of someone mentioned in the above cited Bethlehem Steel employee records. Usually a reference in the census, such as occupation, was sought to confirm that the individual in the census was the same person listed in the company records.

The records in the Sholes' and census tables have the added ability of allowing the user to click on the residential address of a returned record and get a list of links to everyone known living at that address. This feature is very helpful in identifying family members and borders.

Comparing records from different sources

Although the records in the database are within a span of two years and located in the same geographic area, it can be difficult to match an individual in one record with the same person in another. For example, the Sholes' Directory lists nine Charles Smiths (some using a middle initial). Three of these Mr. Smiths list their employer as Bethlehem Steel. The records from the 1901 employees of Machine Shop #2 list one Charles Smith, but as his listed occupation does not match with the three Smiths from the Sholes' Directory who reportedly worked for the Steel it is almost impossible to determine which, if any, of the Charles Smiths in the Sholes' Directory was the one listed in the Bethlehem Steel record.

To help researchers track individuals among the various records, Lehigh University's staff undertook the imposing task of comparing fields in each record to potential matches in corresponding records. The results of this endeavor are currently in the project's Quality Control Documentation (PDF), but are also being placed within fields of their corresponding database tables.

1. (1935) [Sanborn maps of the the Bethlehem Steel property].
   Hybrid of 1912 and 1935 Sanborn maps compiled by the Bethlehem Steel Corporation to include the Bethlehem Steel land. Illustrative maps of the Bethlehem Steel's Lehigh and Saucon plants.
   1 v. (unpaged) : mostly col. maps ; 68 cm.
2. (1912) [Sanborn maps of the Bethlehems].
   Sandborn maps illustrating Bethlehem, South Bethlehem, Northampton Heights and Fountain Hill.
   1 v. (unpaged) : mostly col. maps ; 68 cm.
3. (1902) [Report] Employees Mfg. Dept. June 1902.
   This report contains a list of employees in the Manufacturing Department at the Bethlehem Steel in June, 1902. The report lists the names of the employees, along with the department they are in, the date employed, their old salary, the date their salary was last increased, and lastly, their present salary.
   3 leaves ; table ; 22 x 28 cm.
4. (1902) [Report] Salaries of Mfg. Dept. 1902.
   This report lists the monthly/daily and yearly salaries of Manufacturing Department workers at the Bethlehem Steel Company. The lists are divided by department and include names, salaries, and dates. The report also provides the average salaries and number of workers in each department.
   35 p. ; 19 cm.
5. (1901) [Report] List of men employed in No. 2 shop.
   This report is a list of the men employed in the Number 2 Machine Shop at the Bethlehem Steel as of September 24, 1901. The report includes the names of the employees (organized by position), their employee numbers, and the rate each employee received.
   20 p. : table ; 27 cm.
6. (1900) [Report] [Construction Department rates and Construction Shop rates at the Bethlehem Steel Company].
   This report lists the rates per hour of the Construction Department and Construction Shop at the Bethlehem Steel Company in April, 1900. The names of workers are listed for each position along with their rate per hour for both the Constructon Deparment and Consruction Shop sections of the report. The words "Not Approved" is written on the front of this report.
   29 p. : tables ; 27 cm.
7. (1900) Sholes' Directory of the Bethlehems, 1900-1901.
   "… When one considers that this book contains over 32,000 items of distinct information, all compiled and brought into shape for ready reference, it will perhaps be surprising how few errors are manifest. The miscellaneous data classed as Appendix has been arranged with some degree of system instead of being loosely scattered. The Street Guide — pages 65-142 — is an entirely new feature here and …
   522 p.