Coplay Cement Company Kilns

Last updated
Coplay Cement Company Kilns
Coplay Cement Company Kilns in Saylor Park.jpg
Coplay Cement Company Kilns, September 2012
USA Pennsylvania location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationN. 2nd St.,
Coplay, Pennsylvania
Coordinates 40°40′34″N75°29′42″W / 40.67611°N 75.49500°W / 40.67611; -75.49500 Coordinates: 40°40′34″N75°29′42″W / 40.67611°N 75.49500°W / 40.67611; -75.49500
Area2.6 acres (1.1 ha)
Built1892–1893
Built byCoplay Cement Co.
Architectural styleSchoefer vertical
NRHP reference No. 80003556 [1]
Added to NRHPSeptember 2, 1980

Coplay Cement Company Kilns, also known as the Saylor Park Industrial Museum, is an open-air historic site located at Coplay, Pennsylvania in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The nine kilns were built between 1892 and 1893 and used for the production of Portland cement.

The kilns are constructed fom locally produced red brick, and are known as Schoefer vertical kilns. They were shut down in 1904, and the Coplay Cement Company then donated them and the surrounding land to Lehigh County in 1975, which was used in creating a cement industry museum celebrating the important role the company and cement played in the area's early economic development. It is operated as a partnership between Lehigh County, which owns and maintains the site, and the Lehigh County Historical Society, which provides educational services. [2] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. [1]

The Saylor Cement Museum honors David Saylor (1827-1884), the father of the American Portland cement industry, and the people who built this industry into one of the most important in the Lehigh Valley and the nation. Lehigh County was a natural spot for cement production. Cement is made from rocks containing lime, silica, and alumina; Lehigh County limestone “cement rock” contains all three ingredients.

In 1866, David O. Saylor helped found Coplay Cement Company. In 1871, he received the first American patent for Portland cement, which is much stronger than the natural cement that had previously been produced in this country. Saylor's Portland cement built bridges, docks, jetties, roads, aqueducts, subways, and skyscrapers. By 1900, the Lehigh Valley made 72% of Portland cement produced in this country. [3]

The first kiln at the Coplay Cement Company was a dome kiln. Dome kilns were inefficient; they had to shut down often. In 1893 Coplay Cement built Mill B, containing the Schoefer kilns standing today. Originally enclosed in a large building, Schoefer kilns could run continuously. Soon, however, the even more efficient rotary kilns came into use. Mill B's outdated Schoefer kilns shut down in 1904, and Coplay Cement later used Mill B's buildings for storage. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portland cement</span> Binder used as basic ingredient of concrete

Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in the early 19th century by Joseph Aspdin, and is usually made from limestone. It is a fine powder, produced by heating limestone and clay minerals in a kiln to form clinker, grinding the clinker, and adding 2 to 3 percent of gypsum. Several types of Portland cement are available. The most common, called ordinary Portland cement (OPC), is grey, but white Portland cement is also available. Its name is derived from its resemblance to Portland stone which was quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. It was named by Joseph Aspdin who obtained a patent for it in 1824. His son William Aspdin is regarded as the inventor of "modern" Portland cement due to his developments in the 1840s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coplay, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Coplay is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. Coplay's population was 3,348 at the 2020 census. It is located six miles (10 km) northwest of Allentown. The borough is part of the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th-most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. as of the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fullerton, Pennsylvania</span> Census-designated place in Pennsylvania, United States

Fullerton is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Whitehall Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The population of Fullerton was 16,588 as of the 2020 census. Fullerton is a suburb of Allentown in the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. as of the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitehall Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania</span> Township in Pennsylvania, United States

Whitehall Township is a township with home rule status in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The township's population was 26,738 as of the 2010 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lehigh Canal</span> United States historic place

The Lehigh Canal is a navigable canal that begins at the mouth of Nesquehoning Creek on the Lehigh River in eastern Pennsylvania. It was built in two sections over a span of 20 years beginning in 1818. The lower section spanned the distance between Easton and present-day Jim Thorpe. In Easton, the canal met the Delaware and Morris Canals, which allowed anthracite coal and other goods to be transported further up the U.S. East Coast. At its height, the Lehigh Canal was 72 miles (116 km) long.

Portland is a town in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2016 census, Portland had a population of 2,424 people. The town was named after Australia's first cement works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor</span> United States National Heritage Area in Pennsylvania

The Delaware & Lehigh Canal National and State Heritage Corridor (D&L) is a 165-mile (266 km) National Heritage Area in eastern Pennsylvania in the United States. It stretches from north to south, across five counties and over one hundred municipalities. It follows the historic routes of the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad, Lehigh Valley Railroad, the Lehigh Navigation, Lehigh Canal, and the Delaware Canal, from Bristol to Wilkes-Barre in the northeastern part of the state. The backbone of the Corridor is the 165-mile (266 km) D&L Trail. The Corridor's mission is to preserve heritage and conserve green space for public use in Bucks, Northampton, Lehigh, Carbon, and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania. It also operates Hugh Moore Historical Park & Museums, which includes the National Canal Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cowell Lime Works</span> United States historic place

The Cowell Lime Works, in Santa Cruz, California, was a manufacturing complex that quarried limestone, produced lime and other limestone products, and manufactured wood barrels for transporting the finished lime. Part of its area is preserved as the Cowell Lime Works Historic District, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. In addition to the four lime kilns, cooperage and other features relating to lime manufacture, the Historic District also includes other structures associated with the Cowell Ranch, including barns, a blacksmith shop, ranch house, cook house and workers' cabins. The 32-acre Historic District is located within the University of California, Santa Cruz campus, to either side of the main campus entrance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lehigh County Historical Society</span> Historical/Museum in Pennsylvania, U.S.

Lehigh County Historical Society is a nonprofit organization, founded in 1904, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and exhibiting the history of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The Historical Society and Lehigh Valley Heritage Museum are located at 432 West Walnut Street in Allentown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Egypt, Pennsylvania</span> Census-designated place in Pennsylvania, United States

Egypt is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Whitehall Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population of Egypt was 2,588 as of the 2020 census. It located about 7 miles (11 km) north of Allentown and is part of the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. as of the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Deshler</span>

Fort Deshler, located near Egypt, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, USA, was a French and Indian War era frontier fort established in 1760 to protect settlers from Indian attacks. The fort was near the location of what is now the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 145 and Chestnut Street, between Egypt and Coplay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cementon, Pennsylvania</span> Census-designated place in Pennsylvania, United States

Cementon is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The town is in Whitehall Township, 7 miles (11 km) north of Allentown. As of the 2020 census, the population of Cementon was 1,657. Cementon is part of the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. as of 2020. It uses the Whitehall Township ZIP Code of 18052.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ironton Railroad</span> Railway line in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania

The Ironton Railroad was a shortline railroad in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. Originally built in 1861 to haul iron ore and limestone to blast furnaces along the Lehigh River, traffic later shifted to carrying Portland cement when local iron mining declined in the early 20th century. Much of the railroad had already been abandoned when it became part of Conrail in 1976, and the last of its trackage was removed in 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cement City Historic District</span> Historic district in Pennsylvania, United States

Cement City Historic District is a historic district in Donora, Pennsylvania. The district includes 80 Prairie School concrete residences built in 1916–17. The homes served as housing for employees of the American Steel and Wire Company. Poured-in-place concrete houses had become popular in large-scale housing developments at the time, partly thanks to promotion by Thomas Edison; the homes built in Donora used a newly patented construction method from the Lambie Concrete House Corporation. Building the houses required a combined 10,000 barrels of Portland cement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swatara Furnace</span> United States historic place

The Swatara Furnace is a historic iron furnace and 200-acre national historic district located along Mill Creek, a tributary of the Swatara Creek in Pine Grove Township, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milwaukee Falls Lime Company</span> Historic landmark in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin

The Milwaukee Falls Lime Company is the former owner of a limestone quarry and lime kilns located in Grafton, Wisconsin. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. The quarry and kilns are now Lime Kiln Park, which also features a pavilion, playground, walking paths, sledding hill, horseshoe pits, and disc golf course.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marlborough Historic District</span> Historic district in Michigan, United States

The Marlborough Historic District is a cement factory located on James Road in Pleasant Plains Township, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1971 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

The cement industry in the United States produced 82.8 million tonnes of cement in 2015, worth US$9.8 billion, and was used to manufacture concrete worth about US$50 billion. The US was the world's third-largest producer of cement, after China and India. The US cement industry includes 99 cement mills in 34 states, plus two plants in Puerto Rico. The industry directly employed 10,000 workers in 2015. Ten percent of the cement used in the United States in 2015 was imported.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hurstville Historic District</span> Historic district in Iowa, United States

Hurstville Historic District is a nationally recognized historic district located north of Maquoketa, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. At the time of its nomination it included three areas: the former lime manufacturing works, a farmstead, and the townsite. All that remains are the four kilns, and an old warehouse. Both the townsite, which was across the road and to the southwest, and the farmstead, which was behind the kilns to the south, are gone. Also gone are the remaining company buildings, with the exception of the old warehouse, which were across the road to the west. The houses in the townsite were side-gable cottages. Many lacked indoor plumbing into the 1970s and were vacant. The farmstead included 20 structures devoted to domestic or agricultural use. Two large barns were the most notable structures. The farm served the needs of the town. The most significant structures in the district were the lime kilns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raffan's Mill and Brick Bottle Kilns</span> Historic site in New South Wales, Australia

Raffan's Mill and Brick Bottle Kilns is a heritage-listed lime kiln at Carlton Road, Portland, New South Wales, Australia. It was built from 1884 to 1895 by George Raffan and Alexander Currie. It is also known as Raffan's Mill and Brick Bottle Kilns Precinct, Portland Cement Works Site, Williwa Street Portland. The property is owned by Boral. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 3 August 2012.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania" (Searchable database). CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System.Note: This includes Mahlon H. Hellerich and Ralph J. Christian (March 1978). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Coplay Cement Company Kilns" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-03-05. and Keast & Hood, Co. (1989). "Historic Structure Report: Coplay Cement Company Kilns" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  3. 1 2 Saylor Cement Museum Brochure.