Manufacturing | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/manufacturing/RSS feed for ManufacturingenMon, 13 Jul 2026 17:26:51 +0000The Largest Operating Steam Locomotive in the World Weighs 1.2 Million Pounds. Now, the Historic Train May Be Coming to Your Townhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-largest-operating-steam-locomotive-in-the-world-weighs-1-2-million-pounds-now-the-historic-train-may-be-coming-to-your-town-180989112/Built in the 1940s, Big Boy No. 4014 retired in 1961 after traveling for more than one million miles. It's now making its way across the country in honor of America's 250th birthdayMon, 13 Jul 2026 17:26:51 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-largest-operating-steam-locomotive-in-the-world-weighs-1-2-million-pounds-now-the-historic-train-may-be-coming-to-your-town-180989112/How One German Button Maker Searched the Rivers of the American Midwest for the Shells That Could Make Him a Fortunehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-one-german-button-maker-searched-the-rivers-of-the-american-midwest-for-the-shells-that-could-make-him-a-fortune-180989012/John Boepple settled in Muscatine, Iowa, where he produced pearl buttons made from freshwater mussel shells. His innovations brought economic prosperity to the town—and disaster to the local mussel populationsThu, 25 Jun 2026 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-one-german-button-maker-searched-the-rivers-of-the-american-midwest-for-the-shells-that-could-make-him-a-fortune-180989012/