Catharine Furnace

Last updated September 27, 2022

Catharine Furnace is a historic iron furnace in Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, near Chancellorsville in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. It was built in 1837 and closed down ten years later. During the American Civil War the furnace came into use again.

John S. Wellford was the manager, principal owner and driving force of Catharine Furnace from its foundation to his death in 1846. His success in obtaining government ordnance contracts for the furnace was based on his personal social network. Relying on these contracts, the company neglected to expand on the open market. When Wellford died in 1846, the loss of his network therefore led to its failure.^[1]

In 1861, the furnace was taken over by a new company. It began its operations by restoring and updating the furnace. During the Overland Campaign, the furnace was at least partly destroyed by Union troops, yet being rebuilt again in November 1864 and in full operation in February 1865. The furnace operated under contract with the Confederate government and enjoyed the release of skilled workers from the Confederate army for service at the furnace. After the end of the war, the demand for Virginia iron products ceased due to loss of government contract and competition from western Pennsylvania.^[2]

First period, 1836-1847

Catharine Furnace was founded and built by Fredericksburg Iron and Steel Manufacturing Company, a joint-stock company chartered in 1836, and owned by Francis B. Deane, John Heth, John S. Wellford, Edward H. Carmichael and William Crump with an undivided fifth interest each. Wellford was the financial backer of the company as well as the manager of the furnace. After several transfers, the owners of the company in 1841 was Wellford who owned two undivided and one half of a fifth, Carmichael whose fifth was held in trust by William N. Wellford (the son of John S.), Deane whose fifth was held in trust by Richard N. Cunningham, and Henry Taylor who had bought half of Crump's fifth. When Wellford in 1846 bought Taylor's half interest, he obtained the controlling interest of the company. Wellford was the financial backer of the company and the manager of the furnace. When the older Wellford died in 1846, the younger Wellford, in agreement with Carmichael and Cunningham, decided to terminate operations and sell the furnace. No purchaser was found, however, and the owners in 1847 abandoned the blast furnace and other buildings.^[3]

John S. Wellford was a seasoned entrepreneur with a well developed personal network linking bankers, miners and other enthusiasts of internal improvements. The company acquired land with rich assets of iron ore and extensive woodlands suitable for charcoal production. Situated in an area with a surplus of enslaved workers that often were hired by iron works in the Shenandoah Valley, the furnace enjoyed a comparative advantage over its business rivals in acquiring inexpensive labor. Shares in the company was technically open for purchase by the general public, yet in reality it functioned as a partnership, with Wellford much of the time running the business as if he was a proprietary owner.^[4]

Wellford named the furnace after his mother, and by the early spring of 1838 the blast furnace was ready for operation. The panic of 1837 undermined the business prospects in the iron industry dramatically, yet Catharine Furnace could sell pig iron to Fredericksburg Union Manufacturing Company and to Tredegar Iron Company. Two of the company's owner, Edward H. Carmichael and William Crump, sat on the board of the Fredericksburg Union Co., while another owner, Francis B. Deane, was president of Tredegar ironworks. Tredegar remained Catherine Furnace's largest customer until 1841, when Tredegar's business was at a slump and Deane left the presidency. During these years Catherine Furnace had been run with an accumulated loss of thirty-nine thousand dollars.^[5]

From 1841, the business of Catharine Furnace began to improve through a number of ordnance contracts with the Navy and War departments. The Navy bought many tens of thousands of 32-pound shots, making the mainstay of the company's income. Wellford managed to persuade the Navy to give an extra allowance for transportation of the heavy shots from the furnace to Fredericksburg and from there to Gosport Navy Yard. He lost out to bids from the Tredegar Works, however, and in 1845 the deliveries had been discontinued. The Army replaced the Navy as Catherine Furnace's main customer, now buying 8 and 10 inch artillery shell and 12 and 24 pound shot to be delivered at Fort Monroe. When Wellford died in December 1846, the business fell apart. A large government contract never came through and the surviving owners were not able to take over his role as the driving force behind the company. The government only contracted with individuals, not companies, and Wellford's son and executor William Wellford, were neither willing, nor able to follow in his father's footsteps. The personal network that the older Wellford had created, and which he relied on to create business opportunities, could not be replicated by his son.^[6]

Second period, 1861-1865

An artist's reconstruction of how Catharine Furnace might have looked like during the Civil War. Catharine-Furnace--conjecture.jpg — An artist's reconstruction of how Catharine Furnace might have looked like during the Civil War.

In 1861, the furnace was sold to a consortium made up of George B. Scott, A. Alexander Little, J. Warren Slaughter, Charles C. Wellford (the brother of the deceased John S.) and Charles B. Wellford (the nephew). Within two months, the consortium sold the property to The Catherine Furnace Company; a business venture with the purpose of mining and smelting ore and manufacturing iron, owned by the members of the consortium themselves.^[3] It was the increased demand for iron for arming the Confederate army and navy that made resumptions of operations profitable. Catharine Furnace entered into a contract with the Confederate Navy; it was agreed that the furnace would deliver 2,000 tons of pig iron over three years. The iron would be used either by the Tredegar Works or the Virginia State Armory, both at Richmond. The first blast took place in 1862 after the stack and the hot blast equipment was repaired and a steam engine was bought. Catherine Furnace also managed to obtain leave from the army for a large number of skilled workers needed for the rebuilding of the furnace.^[7]

In July 1862, Charles C. Wellford was imprisoned by the federal government, but released after six weeks in custody. He later moved his family to Catharine Furnace when his house in the city was damaged during the battle of Fredericksburg. The battle of Chancellorsville raged around the furnace complex. Wellford had to run into the woods when federal soldiers early in the battle searched his house for enemies and food. Stonewall Jackson's flanking movement began at Catharine Furnace. The movement took place along cart roads that Wellford had told Stonewall's topographical engineer Jedediah Hotchkiss about, and was guided by Wellford's son, Charles B. Wellford. The Union Army believed Stonewall was retreating and opened artillery fire after them, forcing Wellford's wife and daughters to flee the bursting shells. A small confederate regiment held a defensive line at the furnace in order to buy time for Stonewall's flanking movement and fighting took place among the furnace buildings.^[8]

After the battle, Catharine Furnace Company claimed compensation for damages from the Confederate government. Most breakage did not occur during actual combat, but at the time when United States forces held the furnace while the real fighting took place north of it. The furnace was repaired and back in operation in early 1864. During the Overland Campaign, Union cavalry under General Custer met Confederate cavalry under Fitz Lee at the furnace on May 6, 1864. The fighting resulted in the destruction of the furnace, and it was officially reported by the Confederate Army that the complex was "burned by the enemy". It was not the end of Catharine Furnace, as it was rebuilt, back in operation and hiring slaves at least as early as at the end of January 1865. J. Warren Slaughter took over from Wellford as actual manager, but the end of the war ended the heavy demand for iron; the inventory was sold to Philadelphia and Slaughter was told to sell off the land.^[9]

Appendix: Physical property 1847

When the owners decided to sell Catharine Furnace in 1847, a description of the property was included in advertisements published in several papers.^[10]^[11] The property contained 4,684 acres of land; a dwelling house or family residence, two stories, 8 rooms, kitchen and room for servants; an engine house of stone, 20 feet wide and 70 feet long, and a steam engine of 14 horsepower; a blast furnace 36 feet high, built in 1837 with two tuyeres; a bridge house 33 feet wide and 47 feet long; a casting house 30 feet wide and 50 feet long with a shed on each side; cupolas; office; boarding house for workers; ball house; pattern house; smoke house; and a coal house.^[12]

Appendix: Enslaved labor 1837-1846

Although positions as moulders at Catharine Furnace were filled by itinerant white workers, the bulk of the labor needed was provided by enslaved workers hired from their masters. Patterns and gauges were provided by the government and the furnace did not develop its own labor force of skilled workers. In 1837, the labor force consisted of 86 enslaved workers, with 19 earmarked as mine workers.^[13] The number of hired enslaved workers varied over the years. The lowest figure was 33 in 1844 which was about the minimum number needed to run a furnace. The highest number was 100 in 1838. Wellford used both free and enslaved workers for making charcoal. Colliers were skilled workers and Wellford used to reward the enslaved collier he hired with small amount of cash, at the same time paying a large sum in hire for him. The menial task of chopping wood for the pile was done by unqualified enslaved labor. Enslaved workers at the furnace were also paid cash for extra work. There are records of enslaved workers trying to run away but no evidence of anyone succeeding.^[14]

Related Research Articles

Tredegar is a town and community situated on the banks of the Sirhowy River in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent, in the southeast of Wales. Within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire, it became an early centre of the Industrial Revolution in Wales. The relevant wards collectively listed the town's population as 15,103 in the UK 2011 census.

The Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond, Virginia, was the biggest ironworks in the Confederacy during the American Civil War, and a significant factor in the decision to make Richmond its capital.

CSS Fredericksburg was a casemate ironclad that served as part of the James River Squadron of the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War. Laid down in 1862 and Launched the following year, she did not see action until 1864 due to delays in receiving her armor and guns. After passing through the obstructions at Drewry's Bluff in May 1864, she participated in several minor actions on the James River and fought in the Battle of Chaffin's Farm from September 29 to October 1. On January 23 and 24, 1865, she was part of the Confederate fleet at the Battle of Trent's Reach, and was one of only two Confederate ships to make it past the obstructions at Trent's Reach. After the Confederate attack failed, Fredericksburg withdrew with the rest of the James River Squadron. On April 3, as the Confederates were abandoning Richmond, Fredericksburg and the other vessels of the James River Squadron were burned. Her wreck was located in the 1980s, buried under sediment.

Joseph Reid Anderson was an American civil engineer, industrialist, politician and soldier. During the American Civil War he served as a Confederate general, and his Tredegar Iron Company was a major source of munitions and ordnance for the Confederate States Army. Starting with a small forge and rolling mill in the mid-1830s, It was a flourishing operation by 1843 when he leased it. He eventually bought the company outright in 1848 and forcefully and aggressively built Tredegar Iron Works into the South's largest and most significant iron works. When the Civil War broke out he entered the Army as a brigadier general in 1861. Shortly after he was wounded and then resigned from the Army returning to the iron works. It was the Confederacy's major source of cannons and munitions, employing some 900 workers, most of whom were slaves. His plant was confiscated by the Union army at the end of the war, but returned to him in 1867 and he remained president until his death. Anderson was very active in local civic and political affairs.

The American Civil War Museum is a multi-site museum in the Greater Richmond Region of central Virginia, dedicated to the history of the American Civil War. The museum operates three sites: The White House of the Confederacy, American Civil War Museum at Historic Tredegar in Richmond, and American Civil War Museum at Appomattox. It maintains a comprehensive collection of artifacts, manuscripts, Confederate imprints, and photographs.

Sloss Furnaces is a National Historic Landmark in Birmingham, Alabama in the United States. It operated as a pig iron-producing blast furnace from 1882 to 1971. After closing, it became one of the first industrial sites in the U.S. to be preserved and restored for public use. In 1981, the furnaces were designated a National Historic Landmark by the United States Department of the Interior.

In American Colonial history, the Iron Act, also called the Importation, etc. Act 1750, was one of the legislative measures introduced by the British Parliament, within its system of Trade and Navigation Acts. The Act sought to increase the importation of pig and bar iron from its American colonies and to prevent the building of iron-related production facilities within these colonies, particularly in North America where these raw materials were identified. The dual purpose of the act was to increase manufacturing capacity within Great Britain itself, and to limit potential competition from the colonies possessing the raw materials.

Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site in southeastern Berks County, near Elverson, Pennsylvania, is an example of an American 19th century rural "iron plantation," whose operations were based around a charcoal-fired cold-blast iron blast furnace. The significant restored structures include the furnace group (blast furnace, water wheel, blast machinery, cast house and charcoal house), as well as the ironmaster's house, a company store, the blacksmith's shop, a barn and several worker's houses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cornwall Iron Furnace</span> Historic district in Pennsylvania, United States

Cornwall Iron Furnace is a designated National Historic Landmark that is administered by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in Cornwall, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The furnace was a leading Pennsylvania iron producer from 1742 until it was shut down in 1883. The furnaces, support buildings and surrounding community have been preserved as a historical site and museum, providing a glimpse into Lebanon County's industrial past. The site is the only intact charcoal-burning iron blast furnace in its original plantation in the western hemisphere. Established by Peter Grubb in 1742, Cornwall Furnace was operated during the Revolution by his sons Curtis and Peter Jr. who were major arms providers to George Washington. Robert Coleman acquired Cornwall Furnace after the Revolution and became Pennsylvania's first millionaire. Ownership of the furnace and its surroundings was transferred to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1932.

The Iron & Steel Museum of Alabama, also known as the Tannehill Museum, is an industrial museum that demonstrates iron production in the nineteenth-century Alabama located at Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park in McCalla, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. Opened in 1981, it covers 13,000 square feet (1,200 m²).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company</span> American steelmaking company

The Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company (1852–1952), also known as TCI and the Tennessee Company, was a major American steel manufacturer with interests in coal and iron ore mining and railroad operations. Originally based entirely within Tennessee, it relocated most of its business to Alabama in the late nineteenth century, following protests over its use of free convict labor. With a sizable real estate portfolio, the company owned several Birmingham satellite towns, including Ensley, Fairfield, Docena, Edgewater and Bayview. It also established a coal mining camp it sold to U.S. Steel which developed it into the Westfield, Alabama planned community.

French weapons in the American Civil War had a key role in the conflict and encompassed most of the sectors of weaponry of the American Civil War (1861–1865), from artillery to firearms, submarines and ironclad warships. The effect of French weapons was especially significant in field artillery and infantry. These weapons were either American productions based on French designs, or sometimes directly imported from France.

The Williams gun was a Confederate gun that was classified as a 1-lb cannon. It was designed by Captain D.R. Williams, of Covington, Kentucky, who later served as an artillery captain with a battery of his design. It was a breech-loading, rapid-fire cannon that was operated by a hand-crank. The barrel was four feet long and a 1.57-inch caliber. The hand crank opened the sliding breech which allowed the crew to load a round and cap the primer. As the crank was continued, it closed the breech and automatically released the hammer. The effective range was 800 yards but the maximum range was 2000 yards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Means</span>

Thomas Williamson Means was a settler of Hanging Rock, Ohio, and a native of South Carolina. Together with his brother Hugh he became notable in Ashland, Kentucky, after he built the Buena Vista Furnace and became a director of the Kentucky Coal, Iron & Manufacturing Company. He was also the father of Ashland Mayor John Means. Means owned furnaces in Alabama, Kentucky, Ohio, and Virginia.

Ebbw Vale Steelworks was an integrated steel mill located in Ebbw Vale, South Wales. Developed from 1790, by the late 1930s it had become the largest steel mill in Europe. Nationalized after World War II, as the steel industry changed to bulk handling, iron and steel making was ceased in the 1970s, as the site was redeveloped as a specialised tinplate works. Closed by Corus in 2002, the site is being redeveloped in a joint-partnership between Blaenau Gwent Council and the Welsh Government.

Tredegar Iron and Coal Company was an important 19th century ironworks in Tredegar, Wales, which due to its need for coke became a major developer of coal mines and particularly the Sirhowy Valley of South Wales. It is most closely associated with the Industrial Revolution and coal mining in the South Wales Valleys.

The Low Moor Ironworks was a wrought iron foundry established in 1791 in the village of Low Moor about 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Bradford in Yorkshire, England. The works were built to exploit the high-quality iron ore and low-sulphur coal found in the area. Low Moor made wrought iron products from 1801 until 1957 for export around the world. At one time it was the largest ironworks in Yorkshire, a major complex of mines, piles of coal and ore, kilns, blast furnaces, forges and slag heaps connected by railway lines. The surrounding countryside was littered with waste, and smoke from the furnaces and machinery blackened the sky. Today Low Moor is still industrial, but the pollution has been mostly eliminated.

The Shelby Iron Company was an iron manufacturing company that operated an ironworks in Shelby, Alabama. The iron company produced iron for the Confederate States of America and was destroyed towards the end of the American Civil War. The company continued to produce iron until the early part of the 20th century.

Elisha Peck (1789-1851) was a Massachusetts-born merchant who formed a partnership with Anson Green Phelps. He ran the British side of their business from Liverpool for about thirteen years. The partnership ended in 1834 after an accident at their New York warehouse claimed the lives of seven people. Their assets were divided and Peck took ownership of the metal manufacturing plants at Haverstraw, New York. Phelps continued with the mercantile business that he had developed with Peck, forming a new company called Phelps Dodge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lithgow Blast Furnace</span> Former blast furnace in New South Wales

The Lithgow Blast Furnace is a heritage-listed former blast furnace and now park and visitor attraction at Inch Street, Lithgow, City of Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia. It was built from 1906 to 1907 by William Sandford Limited. It is also known as Eskbank Ironworks Blast Furnace site; Industrial Archaeological Site. The property is owned by Lithgow City Council. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

References

↑ Adams, Sean Patrick (2013). "The perils of personal capital in antebellum America: John Spotswood Wellford and Virginia's Catharine Furnace." Business History 55(8): 1339-1360, p. 1339.
↑ Northington, Oscar F., Jr. (1936). "The Revival of the Iron Industry in Eastern Virginia as exemplified by the History of the Catharine Furnace in Spotsylvania County." William and Mary Quarterly 16(1): 71-77, pp. 77-80.
1 2 Northington 1936, op.cit., pp. 72-75.
↑ Adams 2013, op.cit., pp. 1340, 1343.
↑ Adams 2013, op.cit., pp. 1343-1344, 1345-1347.
↑ Adams 2013, op.cit., pp. 1347-1351.
↑ Adams, Sean Patrick (2011). Iron from the Wilderness: The history of Virginia's Catharine Furnace. National Park Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, pp. 63, 65, 67.
↑ Adams 2011, op.cit., pp. 67-70.
↑ Adams 2011, op.cit., pp. 70-72.
↑ Northington 1936, op.cit., p. 75
↑ Adams 2013, op.cit., p. 1351.
↑ Richmond Enquirer, Richmond, Va., May 14, 1847.
↑ Adams 2013, op.cit., p. 1344, 1354.
↑ Adams 2011, op.cit., pp. 51, 58, 81.

Coordinates: 38°17′19″N77°38′54″W / 38.28866°N 77.64835°W / 38.28866; -77.64835

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] Adams, Sean Patrick (2013). "The perils of personal capital in antebellum America: John Spotswood Wellford and Virginia's Catharine Furnace." Business History 55(8): 1339-1360, p. 1339.

[2] Northington, Oscar F., Jr. (1936). "The Revival of the Iron Industry in Eastern Virginia as exemplified by the History of the Catharine Furnace in Spotsylvania County." William and Mary Quarterly 16(1): 71-77, pp. 77-80.

[North7780-3] 1 2 Northington 1936, op.cit., pp. 72-75.

[4] Adams 2013, op.cit., pp. 1340, 1343.

[5] Adams 2013, op.cit., pp. 1343-1344, 1345-1347.

[6] Adams 2013, op.cit., pp. 1347-1351.

[7] Adams, Sean Patrick (2011). Iron from the Wilderness: The history of Virginia's Catharine Furnace. National Park Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, pp. 63, 65, 67.

[8] Adams 2011, op.cit., pp. 67-70.

[9] Adams 2011, op.cit., pp. 70-72.

[10] Northington 1936, op.cit., p. 75

[11] Adams 2013, op.cit., p. 1351.

[12] Richmond Enquirer, Richmond, Va., May 14, 1847.

[13] Adams 2013, op.cit., p. 1344, 1354.

[14] Adams 2011, op.cit., pp. 51, 58, 81.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]