Pine Grove Iron Works

Last updated
Pine Grove Iron Works
Pine Grove Iron Works, PA - furnace stack.jpg
Furnace in 2019
Location Mountain Creek, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Nearest city Cooke, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Coordinates 40°01′52″N77°18′24″W / 40.03111°N 77.30667°W / 40.03111; -77.30667
Area188 acres (76 ha)
Built1764 (1764)
Architectural styleItalianate
NRHP reference No. 77001158 [1]
Added to NRHPApril 13, 1977

The Pine Grove Iron Works was a smelting facility in southcentral Pennsylvania during the Industrial Revolution. The works is notable for remaining structures that are historical visitor attractions of Pine Grove Furnace State Park, including the furnace stack of the Pine Grove Furnace. The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 13, 1977 for its significance in architecture and industry. [2] It includes seven contributing buildings, two structures, fourteen sites, and two objects. [3]

Contents

1872 (top) & 1889 maps show the ore pits and railroad terminus. The "Mountain Creek" water race channel was north of the RR, while the creek through the topographic swale was south of the RR and flowed eastward under the RR bridge. The station was at 40deg01'48''N 77deg18'20''W / 40.0300degN 77.3055degW / 40.0300; -77.3055. 1872 and 1899 Pine Grove Iron Works.png
1872 (top) & 1889 maps show the ore pits and railroad terminus. The "Mountain Creek" water race channel was north of the RR, while the creek through the topographic swale was south of the RR and flowed eastward under the RR bridge. The station was at 40°01′48″N77°18′20″W / 40.0300°N 77.3055°W / 40.0300; -77.3055 .
Owners

c. 1930: PA Bureau of State Parks
1913: PA Department of Forestry
1877: S Mountain Mining & Iron Co
tbd: South Mountain Iron Company
c. 1874: Thomas Iron Company [4] [5]
1864: South Mountain Iron Company
1864: Morehead [5]
1863: Jay Cooke & Co [6]
1845: E. Watts & W. Watts [5]
1838: F. Watts & Penrose [7]
1835: J. Ege & M. P. Ege [5]
1815: P. Ege [8]
1803: M. Ege [9]
1788: Arthur, M. Ege & T. Thornburg [5]
1783: M. Ege, J. Thornburg & T. Thornburg [5]
1773: Simon [9]
1772: McGrew [10]
1762: Stevenson [10] : 270 
1762 (137 acres): Pope [11]
1736: Thomas Penn and Richard Penn [10] : 269–70 

Geography

The works occupied the small area around the furnace stack a "quarter of a mile from the" quarry. [12] Notable geographic points near the works include the Mountain Creek distributary point for the furnace water race on the west, [13] the wash race distributary point from Tom's Run (north), [13] and the confluence of the furnace's water race with the creek (east). Also to the east and southeast were the railroad bridge over the creek and the "east workings" [14] with the limestone quarry ("flux ... pit 250'x75'x50' deep" in 1891) [4] : 326  and Pine Grove bank No. 1. [14]

Pine Grove

Pine Grove was the village/town [15] associated with the iron works [4] (designated the "Pine Grove Furnace" populated place in 1979), [16] and village structures included the Methodist Episcopal Church and residences north of the east-west road through the area. By 1886 the village had a post office, [10] and the schoolhouse and c. 1790 Pine Grove Cemetery ( 40°01′41″N77°17′59″W / 40.02804°N 77.29983°W / 40.02804; -77.29983 ) were south of the village and the iron works. [13] A local store provide goods. [9]

History

Pine Grove Furnace was built about 1770,[ failed verification ] the second of nine Cumberland County furnaces. [15] It was built and operated by Robert Thornburg and John Arthur, in the interest of George Stevenson, who already owned Laurel Forge downstream on Mountain Creek.[ citation needed ] The furnace smelted iron ore to produce colonial cast iron products such as wagon wheel iron, [4] : 245  fireplace backs, iron kettles, ten plate stoves, and in the late 19th century, Baldwin Locomotive parts.

Ironmaster's Mansion, the Ege Mansion Pine Grove Iron Works, PA - ironmaster's mansion.jpg
Ironmaster's Mansion, the Ege Mansion

The Pine Grove Furnace facilities were identified as "Pine Grove Iron-Works" by 1782 ("Mr. Eger's[ sic ] iron-works" in 1783), and in addition to water raceways and charcoal hearths (traces of which are still visible), support facilities were built near the works, e.g., the 1829 L-shaped iron master mansion (named "office" in 1872). [13] A saw mill was built c. 1777,: 56  and the Pine Grove No. 1 bank was used for limonite iron ore while two quarries provided limestone. [4] The 1870 South Mountain RR, with offices at Pine Grove, connected the furnace to limestone pits and three operating ore mines. [11]

Former grist mill, now used as the Appalachian Trail Museum Pine Grove Iron Works, PA - Appalachian Trail Museum.jpg
Former grist mill, now used as the Appalachian Trail Museum

The charcoal-fired furnace was deactivated in 1874, and the engine house(s) continued pumping the ore pit (now Fuller Lake) to keep reduced water levels. [17] The cold blast furnace had been converted to hot blast by 1877, and remodelling in the 1877-8 winter including changes to allow alternate fuels. [17] Connellsville coke was first used on March 22/23, 1879; and anthracite was first used shortly afterward. [17] A rail extension to the Wild Cat pits, [15] : 12  2.5 miles west of Pine Grove, was considered in 1880 but not completed. [18] Net iron output in the peak year of 1883 was 6,000 short tons (5,400 t). [7] The SMRR-succeeding 1891 Hunter's Run and Slate Belt Railroad and 1910 Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railway operated to the Pine Grove Railroad Station and the nearby Pine Grove Park.

Iron production ended in 1895, and the Pine Grove Iron Works was sold on September 12, 1913, as part of 3 tracts which became the majority of the Pine Grove Division of the South Mountain Forest [19] and, by 1931, the Pine Grove Furnace State Park.

The ownership chain of the Pine Grove Iron Works was published in 1886, [10] and a history by one of the superintendents was published in 1934. [11] The Ironmaster's Mansion was restored by 1985 [20] and renovated from 2010 until April 5, 2011.[ failed verification ] In 1991, Railroads to Pine Grove Furnace was published. [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Codorus State Park</span> Artificial lake in Spring Grove, Pennsylvania

Codorus State Park is a 3,500-acre (1,400 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Heidelberg, Manheim, Penn, and West Manheim Townships in southwestern York County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park was created around Lake Marburg, an artificial lake covering 1,275 acres (516 ha), and is named for Codorus Creek, which forms the lake. Codorus State Park is located on Pennsylvania Route 216, 3 miles (4.8 km) from the borough of Hanover.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenwood Furnace State Park</span> State park in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania

Greenwood Furnace State Park is a 423-acre (171 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Jackson Township, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is near the historic iron making center of Greenwood Furnace. The park includes the ghost town of Greenwood that grew up around the ironworks, old roads and charcoal hearths. Greenwood Furnace State Park is adjacent to Rothrock State Forest and on the western edge of an area of Central Pennsylvania known as the Seven Mountains. The park is on Pennsylvania Route 305, 20 miles (32 km) south of State College.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caledonia State Park</span> State park in Pennsylvania, United States

Caledonia State Park is a 1,125-acre (455 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Greene Township, Franklin County and Franklin Township, Adams County in southern Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock Creek (Monocacy River tributary)</span> River in Pennsylvania, United States

Rock Creek is an 18.9-mile-long (30.4 km) tributary of the Monocacy River in south-central Pennsylvania and serves as the border between Cumberland and Mount Joy townships. Rock Creek was used by the Underground Railroad and flows near several Gettysburg Battlefield sites, including Culp's Hill, the Benner Hill artillery location, and Barlow Knoll.

The Bellefonte Central Railroad was a shortline connecting Bellefonte and State College, Pennsylvania. Constructed in the late 19th century to haul local iron ore to furnaces in the Bellefonte region, it later hauled freight traffic to Penn State and lime for steelmaking from local quarries. The line to State College was abandoned in 1974, and most of the remaining railroad in 1984, but a small portion is still used by the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Spring State Park (Pennsylvania)</span> State park in Perry County, Pennsylvania

Big Spring State Park is a 45-acre (18 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Toboyne Township, Perry County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is on Pennsylvania Route 274, 5.5 miles (8.9 km) southwest of New Germantown. Big Spring State Park is a hiking and picnic area. A partially completed railroad tunnel in Conococheague Mountain is a feature of the park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pine Grove Furnace State Park</span>

Pine Grove Furnace State Park is a protected Pennsylvania area that includes Laurel and Fuller Lakes in Cooke Township of Cumberland County. The Park accommodates various outdoor recreation activities, protects the remains of the Pine Grove Iron Works (1764), and was the site of Laurel Forge (1830), Pine Grove Park (1880s), and a brick plant (1892). The Park is 8 miles (13 km) from exit 37 of Interstate 81 on Pennsylvania Route 233.

The Georges Creek Railroad was a railroad operated by the Georges Creek Coal and Iron Company in Western Maryland. The railroad operated from 1853 to 1863, when it was acquired by the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad (C&P).

Toland is a small village and unincorporated community located in Cumberland County and the South Mountain Range, in south−central Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railroad</span>

The Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railroad was a railway line of Pennsylvania from Hunter's Run southward to Gettysburg in the 19th century. The north junction was with the South Mountain RR, and a crossing with the Hanover Junction, Hanover and Gettysburg Railroad's westward extension was at Gettysburg. The crossing also served as a junction for westbound trains to transfer southward across the Gettysburg Battlefield via the G. & H. R. R.'s Round Top Branch to the company's Little Round Top Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Mountain Railroad (Cumberland)</span>

The South Mountain Railroad was a southcentral Pennsylvania railway line for "connecting the Pine Grove works to the Cumberland Valley R. R." and which provided mining and passenger services via a southwest section from Hunter's Run, Pennsylvania, and a northern section from Hunter's Run to the CVRR junction northeast of Carlisle. The northern section merged with the Gettysburg & Harrisburg Railroad line south from Hunter's Run to the Gettysburg Battlefield in 1891 to create the Gettysburg & Harrisburg Railway line, while the branch southwest from Hunter's Run became the Hunter's Run and Slate Belt Railroad line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hunter's Run and Slate Belt Railroad</span>

The Hunter's Run and Slate Belt Railroad was a railway line from the Hunter's Run junction of the Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railway that ran southwestward along the south side of Mountain Creek to the Pine Grove Iron Works. The line serviced facilities for mining, for manufacturing, and for recreation. Portions of the railbed are a section of the Appalachian Trail as well as the majority of the Cumberland County Biker/Hiker Trail and the entire "Old Railroad Bed Road" that is the southeast border of Pine Grove Furnace State Park.

Fuller Lake is the body of water with 1.7 acres (0.0069 km2) of surface area in the former Pine Grove Quarry in Cooke Township, Cumberland County, south-central Pennsylvania.

The South Mountain Iron Company was the owner of the Pine Grove Furnace in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, along South Mountain after the 1864 $1,500,000 purchase from Jay Cooke & Company. In 1877 the company was split into separate mining and railway companies, with the latter South Mountain Railway and Mining Company establishing the 1884 South Mountain Railroad between the Pine Grove Iron Works and the Cumberland Valley Railroad's Carlisle Junction then being purchased by the 1891 Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railway company. The real estate of the 1877 South Mountain Mining and Iron Company is now the Pine Grove Furnace State Park and Michaux State Forest after being sold to the Pennsylvania Department of Forestry in 1912-3.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tapeworm Railroad</span>

The Tapeworm Railroad was a railway line planned by Congressman Thaddeus Stevens and nicknamed by opponents ridiculing a lengthy serpentine section around the Green Ridge of South Mountain after an orator compared the path to a tapeworm depiction on a product's packaging. Switchbacks were planned on the west slope at Hughs Forge along the E Br Antietam Creek and on the east slope at Stevens' 1822 Maria Furnace along Toms Creek, with 3 east slope tunnels through spurs of Jacks Mountain.

The Cumberland County Biker/Hiker Trail is a Pennsylvania rail trail at Pine Grove Furnace State Park and is almost entirely on the "Old Railroad Bed Road" between Fuller Lake and Laurel Lake. The trail is a pleasant 2.2 miles within the Pine Grove Furnace State Park located in the Michaux State Forest. The park is home to many species of wildlife and is a common attraction for locals and tourists alike. Walking, hiking, and biking are the opportunities offered by the trail year round. The biker/hiker trail shares roughly half of its trail with the Appalachian Trail and is a very popular route within the State Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pine Grove Railroad Station</span>

The Pine Grove Railroad Station was the end of the line for the 1870 South Mountain Railroad, which transported materials from limestone pits and three operating ore mines for the Pine Grove Iron Works. The station had a roundhouse and, by 1872, a depot with siding "Pine Grove" was listed on the Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railroad's passenger schedule of April 21, 1884; and the SMRR railroad offices and repair shops were transferred to the 1891 Hunter's Run and Slate Belt Railroad with the station servicing the 1892 Fuller Brick and Slate Company south of the tracks Despite a 1902 forest fire in the area that destroyed buildings, both "Pine Grove Furnace" and "Pine Grove Park" were listed as 1904 HR & SB RR railway stations, and in 1912 new Reading Company track was laid to Pine Grove on "the former Hunters Run and Slate Belt Line". The Pine Grove area was sold to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1913, the tracks and ties have been removed, and the station area is part of the Pine Grove Furnace State Park.

Laurel Lake — also known as Laurel Forge Pond — is a water body with recreation area at Pine Grove Furnace State Park. It is located in the eastern part of Cooke Township, Cumberland County.

Pine Grove Park was a South Mountain Railroad excursion park "in a grove of magnificent trees" established by Colonel Jackson C. Fuller c. 1881 It was located east of the Pine Grove Iron Works near Toland in Cumberland County, south-central Pennsylvania It was in the South Mountain Range of the northern Blue Ridge Mountains System.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ironmaster's Mansion Hostel</span> Description an historic building built in 1829 and now operated as a hostel & event venue.

The Ironmaster's Mansion is a hostel and event venue located near Gardners, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located within Pine Grove Furnace State Park and is also near the midpoint of the Appalachian Trail.

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. ↑ Berman, David (June 21, 1976). "NRHP Registration Form: Pine Grove Furnace / Pine Grove Iron Works". National Park Service – via National Archives Catalog for Pennsylvania.{{cite web}}: External link in |via= (help)Downloading may be slow.
  3. ↑ "Historic Resource Information / National Register Information" – via CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System for Pennsylvania.{{cite web}}: External link in |via= (help)
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Lesley, J. Peter (1892). Final Report Ordered by Legislature, 1891 (Report). Geological Survey of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2011-05-21. Cambrian ... Formation ... Mountain Creek limonite banks ... Pinegrove Furnace banks: 241  ... Red bank of the Thomas Iron Co. ... opened in 1874 ... Pine Grove No. 1 bank; ... 1/2 m. E. of the furnace ... Two large quarries of limestone lie 1000' S. E. of the village of Pine Grove: 245  ... Mountain Creek valley{{cite report}}: External link in |quote= (help)
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Ege, Rev. Thompson P.-D. D. (1911). History and Genealogy Of The Ege Family ... (Archive.org text). The Star Printing Company. Retrieved 2011-05-21. Eobert[ sic ] Thornburg and John Arthur built the Pine Grove furnace in 1770.: 91  ... December 3, 1783, Jacob Simon conveyed Pine Grove Furnace and land, together with another tract of 100 acres, to Michael Ege, Sr., Thomas and Joseph Thornburg, sons of Eobert Thorn- burg — Michael Ege one-half and the Thornburg brothers one- fourth each. ... As it is said Thornburg and Arthur built the furnace in 1770, in the interest of George Stevenson who was then the owner, it is most likely[ sic ] they built the fine old mansion still remaining.: 92 NOTE: The Central Pennsylvania Conservancy claims the mansion was built in 1829.
  6. ↑ "Pine Grove" (Google News Archive). The Adams Sentinel. December 20, 1864. Retrieved 2011-06-13.
  7. 1 2 Frigm, George (October 2005). "History". Pine Grove Furnace State Park. KeystoneAFS.org (American Foundry Society). Retrieved 2011-05-21.NOTE: The 2005 Frigm webpage is transcribed and augmented by the DCNR for their "History" webpage, which adds "In 1764, partners George Stevenson, Robert Thornburgh and John Arthur built an iron furnace along Mountain Creek." (both Ege, 1911, & Mercer, 1914, p. 90 identify Stevenson as "owner of the site" but the furnace was "built by Thornburg & Arthur".)
  8. ↑ Chambers, Theodore Frelinghuysen (2000) [1895]. The Early Germans of New Jersey (Google Books). ISBN   9780806300702 . Retrieved 2011-05-21. [in 1815, Michael Ege] owned the Carlisle works, the Pine Grove furnace, Holly furnace and Cumberland furnace. ... PETER, inherited from his father the Pine Grove iron works.{{cite book}}: External link in |quote= (help)
  9. 1 2 3 Rose (nee Watts), Sarah R. (1914), "Pine Grove Furnace" (Archive.org text), Forges and Furnaces in the Province of Pennsylvania, pp. 181–7, retrieved 2011-05-22, The food and clothes of the people were provided at the "store." (The wagons that took away iron, brought back these necessities.) Calico for their dresses and sun-bonnets, linsey-woolsey (a rough woolen material) for their petticoats; they spun and dyed the wool for their stockings which they knitted themselves. ... Coarse, heavy shoes came from the "store," also flour, "flitch" (salt pork), molasses and tobacco. Many of the women smoked.{{citation}}: |last= has generic name (help); External link in |last= (help) (Rose cites the 1911 Ege genealogy.)
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "Chapter XX: Cook Township". History of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania (USGenWeb Archives). transcription. Warner, Beers & Co. 2009 [1886]. Retrieved 2011-05-21.
  11. 1 2 3 Keefer, Horace Andrew (October 1934) [January 29, 1927]. Recollections, Historical and Otherwise, Relating To Old Pine Grove Furnace (Report). Potomac Appalachian Trail Club Bulletin. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  12. ↑ Rothwell, Richard P., ed. (1902). "The Mineral Industry … to the end of 1898" (Google Books). VII. The Engineering and Mining Journal Co. (Inc.). Retrieved 2011-05-17. At Henry Clay Station, on the Hunter's Run & Slate Belt Railway, ... The slate is brought to the works by railway from the slate quarry, about 3 miles southwest[ sic ] of the works; the soapstone is hauled by wagon from the quarry, a quarter of a mile from the works, and the clay is brought by rail from Laurel Station, 3 miles away. ... about 3 miles below Laurel ... At Crane's Siding, on the same railway, one mile above Hunter's Run Station, is a clay refining plant which has been in operation three years ... The clay is obtained at the long-since abandoned Crane iron ore mine ... obtained its clay from Upper Mill Station, on the Gettysburg & Harrisburg Railway {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help) (similarly-worded Franklin Institute journal of 1899)
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Pine Grove, Penn Township" (Map). Atlas of Cumberland County. F. W. Beers & Co. 1872. Retrieved 2011-05-16.NOTE: " Penn Township ... included [[Cooke Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania|Cook [ sic ] Township]] until it was formed from the southern part of Penn on June 18, 1872."
  14. 1 2 Journal of the Franklin Institute (Google Books). Vol. 148. 1886. p. 28. Retrieved 2011-06-19. The Pine Grove bank No. I has a large horse of white clay, which still (1886) occupies a place in the east workings (cites "report on the iron ore mines and limestone quarries of the Cumberland-Lebanon Valley, by E. B. d'Invilliers, in the An. Rept. Geol. Surv. of Pennsylvania")
  15. 1 2 3 Way, John H. (1986). "Your Guide to the Geology of the Kings Gap Area ..." (PDF). Pennsylvania Geological Survey. Archived from the original (booklet) on September 28, 2012. Retrieved 2011-05-20. At full capacity, an average furnace used 800 bushels of charcoal every 24 hours ... 240 or more acres of woodland{{cite web}}: External link in |number= (help) per year.     p. 12: Figure 6-2 (Map). Invilliers, Edward V. d'. 1886.{{cite map}}: External link in |publisher= (help)     p. 14: Figure 7-1 (Map). Lehman, Ambrose E. 1889.
  16. ↑ "Pine Grove Furnace (1979, 1198297,][http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=154:8:1887178950796815 populated place]), [https://edits.nationalmap.gov/apps/gaz-domestic/public/summary/1196534 State Park (1990, 1196534),][https://edits.nationalmap.gov/apps/gaz-domestic/public/summary/1207388 Furnace Stack (1990, 1207388)". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey . Retrieved 2011-05-21.{{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  17. 1 2 3 Birkinbine, John (1879). Experiments With Charcoal, Coke And Antracite In The Pine Grove Furnace, Pa (Google Books). Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers (Report). Vol. 8. Retrieved 2011-05-19.
  18. ↑ "News of Neighboring Counties" (Google News Archives). Gettysburg Compiler. December 2, 1880. Retrieved 2011-05-18. It is reported that President Fuller, of the South Mountain Railroad, contemplates extending the road to the new ore banks about two miles west of Pine Grove Furnace in the near future. The new banks are very productive, the ore is of an excellent[ sic ] quality, and should the road be extended, they will be operated extensively. (from Echo newspaper) NOTE: Lesley (1892, p. 245) identifies the Wild Cat pits 2 1/2 miles to the west of Pine Grove contained too much phosphorus and were never developed.
  19. ↑ …Department of Forestry…Years 1912-1913 (Report). Pennsylvania Department of Forests and Waters. 1915. Retrieved 2011-05-22. With the final purchase of the lands in Cumberland county at Pine Grove Furnace from the South Mountain Mining & Iron Company, which was consummated by deed bearing date the 12th day of September, 1913
  20. ↑ Lawrence Van Gelder (1985-09-15). "Travel Advisory; to California for gold, Pennsylvania for history". New York Times . Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  21. ↑ "Gettysburg in railroad history book". Gettysburg Times. 1991-12-18.
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.