More than 600 Bethlehem Steel Corporation employees lost their lives in work-related accidents between 1905 and 1996. Family, friends, and workers purchased memorial bricks to recognize those who made the steel that made America. The memorial was built and dedicated in 2001 as a tribute to the thousands of men and women who worked in Bethlehem's steel industry, reflecting words by Mayor Donald T. Cunningham, Jr., the son and grandson of steelworkers, who commissioned its construction.