The following list of iron furnaces in Clarion County was compiled from a variety of sources as listed in the document. Additions and corrections are always welcome.
| Furnace |
Owner |
Date Erected |
| Beaver |
Leonard & Sample (Caldwell)
Long, Blackston(e) & Co. (Rupp, Beck, History) |
1837 (Caldwell)
1835 (Beck, History) |
- Located on Deer Creek, 2 miles from its mouth.
Originally cold blast, later hot. Steam- and water-powered.
Height 33'; 9' bosh. Produced 1,200 tons in 1845;
Rupp listed 12,000 tons in 1847; only 1,500 tons in 1852. Abandoned
1854. D. B. Long, one of the owners, stimulated passage
of a law prohibiting sale of intoxicating liquors within three
miles of this furnace while he was in the Pennsylvania legislature.
|
| Black Fox |
Lawson & Co. (Caldwell)
Welsh & Co.; Adams & Varnum; Jacob Painter, et al.;
Jones & Co.; Joseph M. Thompson; I. M. Boyd; others (History) |
1844 |
- Located on Black Fox Run, about 1 mile from
the Allegheny River in Perry Township. Height 30'; 9' bosh.
Built by Welsh & Co. Bought by Adams & Varnum
in 1848. Failed in 1850. Purchased by Jacob Painter,
et al., at Sheriff's sale. Samuel Barr was Superintendent.
Steam - hot blast. Production in 1845 was 1,000 tons; in
1856 was 2,000 tons. Boiler exploded about 1858; one man
killed, several others critically injured. Abandoned following
explosion.
|
| Buchanan |
Plummer, Creasy & Co. (Caldwell)
Plummer, Crary & Co. (History; Davis) |
1844 |
- Located on the north bank of the Clarion
River opposite Callensburg. Height 30'; 8' bosh. Cold
blast. Production in 1847 was 2,000 tons; averaged 1,200
tons annually. Owners were S. F. Plummer (of Kittanning),
Arnold Plummer (of Franklin), and F. G. Crary (of Kittanning).
Crary became sole proprietor circa 1857. Abandoned
Fall, 1858, because timber was exhausted.
|
| Callensburg |
Alexander & Co. |
|
- Production in 1847 was 1,000 tons.
|
| Catfish |
Over & Lobaugh (Caldwell)
Over, Reichart & Lobaugh (History) |
1845 (Caldwell)
1846 (History) |
- Located on the Allegheny River at the mouth
of Catfish Creek. Steam - cold blast. Height 30'; 8' bosh.
Failed 1851. Built by Over, Reichart & Lobaugh.
Sold to Alexander Miller; leased to J. L. Miller. Manager J. H.
Kahl. Production in only 33 weeks of 1856 was 925.5 tons carbonate
and red ores from within one mile to the north.
|
| Clarion |
Bear & Myers (Caldwell)
C. Myers (Rupp) |
1829 |
- Located on the Clarion River (hence its name),
just west of the mouth of Little Toby Creek. Stack 30' high;
base 24 feet square (8' bosh). Cold blast. Erected
1828 by Henry Bear and Christian
Myers [see his biography on this Web site]. Designed by
Bear. Myers became sole owner
until 1851, after which he assigned it to Nelson Hetherington,
his son-in-law. Closed 1852 because of financial problems.
Production 1847: 1,200 (Caldwell) or 1,300 (Beck, History)
tons.
|
| Clinton |
Moore, Semour & Co. (Caldwell)
(1) Clapp & Semore (Rupp, History)
(2) Samuel F. Plumer (History) |
1841 |
- Located on Hemlock Creek in the extreme northwest
corner of Washington Township. Height 33'; 9.5' bosh. Produced
1,000 tons in 1845 and 1847; 2,000 tons of forge metal out of
fossil buhr stone and fossil limestone mined two miles south of
furnace lower coal measure ore in 1856. Managed by William
Hollis under Plumer's ownership.
|
| Cocheco |
Samuel & John Wilson (Caldwell)
J. & P. Kerr (History) |
1844/1845 (Caldwell)
1844 (Beck, History) |
- Located on Leatherwood Creek, 2 miles from
the Low Grade Railroad. Height 33'; 10' bosh. Also
known as St. Charles Furnace. Built by Wilsons. Sold
to J. & P. Kerr, of Clarion, in 1846. Leased 1861-1865
to Michael McCue. Production in 1845 and 1847 was 1,000
tons; 1850 was 2,000 tons. Originally charcoal furnace;
used coke from Freeport lower coal one year; one year on raw coal
from Freeport upper bed. Only Clarion County furnace that
used raw coal. Began hot blast in 1857. Dismantled
1865. A description can be found on this Web site in Linda Stitt's History of Porter Township.]
|
| Corsica |
|
|
- See Mt. Pleasant.
|
| Deer Creek |
Kerr & Hasson (Caldwell,
History)
Mease & Co. (History) |
1844 |
- Located on Deer Creek, at the turnpike crossing
just west of Shippenville. Cold blast. Production
in 1847 was 1,100 tons. Abandoned 1851.
|
| Eagle |
Curll, Kibbs & Co. (Caldwell)
Kribbs, Reynolds & Curll (History) |
1846 |
- Located on Canoe Creek, one mile from the
Clarion River. Height 30'; 8' bosh. Cold blast. Built
by Curll, Kibbs & Co. Operated by George Kribbs and
Joseph B. Reynolds. Annual production averaged 700-800 tons.
Abandoned 1858.
|
| Elk |
William B. Fitzhugh (Caldwell)
W. B. Fetzer (Davis)
W. B. Fetzer; Kahl & Call (History) |
1842 |
- Also called Smearkase. Located on Deer
Creek, 1 mile above Deer Creek Furnace. Height 22' (small
stack); 7' bosh. Production was 1,000 in 1847; about 700
tons in 1845; only 400 tons in 1854. Abandoned Fall, 1855,
when timber was exhausted.
|
| Franklin |
|
|
- See Wildcat.
|
| Helen |
Robert Barber & Packer (Caldwell,
History)
Robert Barker & Wilson S. Packer (Beck)
David Richey; Samuel Wilson & David McKim (History) |
1845 |
- Located on Scotch Hill road, 8 miles from
Clarion. Height 32'; 8' bosh. Built by Robert Barber
& Packer in 1845. Failed, then bought by David Richey.
Then bought by Samuel Wilson, with whom David McKim was
partner for a while. Cold blast. Production was
756 tons in only 26 weeks in 1856; ore was mined at back of
tunnel
head. Abandoned 1856 or 1857. Built on "old McNaughton
farm." Named "Highland Furnace," in honor of Alexander
McNaughton, by builders. McNaughton was proud of his
Highland Scotland heritage. Pronunciation with Scottish
accent was "heeland,"
which eventually became "Helen."
|
| Hemlock |
Fitzhugh & McGuire (Caldwell)
W. B. Fetzer & McGuire; Horner & Eaton; F. & W. M. Faber
(History) |
1845 |
- Located on Hemlock Creek, very near Clinton
Furnace. Built by W. B. Fetzer & McGuire; Horner &
Eaton. Height 30' (inside); 7.5' bosh. Steam - cold
blast. Production in 1846 and 1847 was 2,000 tons; 1856
was 1,200 tons. Abandoned about 1860.
|
| Jefferson |
Arnold Plummer & Co. |
1838 |
- Located on Beaver Creek at Jefferson Station.
Height 30'; 8' bosh. Built by Arnold & S. F. Plummer;
S. F. later became sole proprietor. Managed by John Haslett.
Sporadic use. Production in 1845 and 1847 was 800
tons; 1856 about 600 tons of forge metal out of limestone and
bog ores. Abandoned 1858, mainly from lack of timber.
|
| Licking |
Ohler & Co. |
1845 |
- Located on Licking Creek, near Lickingsville
in Washington Township. Height 30'; 7.5' bosh. Cold
blast. Production in 1846 and 1847 was 1,200 tons; later
dropped to 400 tons. Abandoned 1856. Owners were William
Ohler, John G. Seigworth, John Myers, and John Kapp.
|
| Limestone |
J. B. Lyon & Bro. (Caldwell)
Jacob B. Lyon & Co. (Rupp, History)
J. Painter & G. B. Smith (History) |
1845 |
- Located on Piney Creek in Limestone Township.
Bosh 8'. Cold blast. Production in 1847 was
1,000 tons and about 1,000 tons each year afterward. Abandoned
1853.
|
| Lucinda |
James Humes & George B. Hamilton
(Caldwell & Beck)
J. Reynolds & Co. (Rupp)
John F. Steinman, James Buchanan & John Reynolds (History) |
1836 (Caldwell)
1833 (Beck) |
- Located on Paint Creek in Knox Township.
Height 30'; 8' bosh. Hot blast. Humes became
sole proprietor. John F. Steinman, assignee of Humes, sold
furnace to James Buchanan (later U. S. President) and John Reynolds
in 1843. Produced 1,200 tons in 1845, but only 1,500 tons
in 1856. Rupp listed 1847 production as 12,000 tons. The
furnace's output had a high reputation among mill and foundrymen.
Abandoned 1858 because of low prices and scarce timber.
Buchanan and Reynolds also bought 4,351 acres in Knox Township
for $20,500. Buchanan visited the furnace in June, 1843.
Furnace leased to Reynolds & Nathan Evans, who managed
it.
|
| Madison |
Mathiot, Miller & Co. (Caldwell)
Lyon, Shorb & Co. (History) |
1836 |
- Located on Piney Creek, 2 miles from Clarion
River. Height 32'; 9' bosh. Steam - cold blast. Under
Lyon, Shorb & Co. ownership, managed by Thomas McCulloch,
Samuel Barr, Calvin Rankin, and M. Conrad. Produced 1,000
tons in 1845 and 1847; only produced 2,500 tons of mill iron out
of argillaceous carbonate ores of coal fields near by in 1856.
Production in 1872 was 3,048 tons. Used chills. Abandoned
1873 as a result of economic panic.
|
| Martha |
|
|
- See Polk.
|
| Mary Ann |
Plummer & Craig (Caldwell)
J. Black & Co. (Rupp) |
1844 |
- Located on Paint Creek where the Franklin-Brookville
turnpike crossed. Bosh 8'. Cold blast. Built
by John Black, Daniel Brenneman, David McKee, and John Thom. Sold
to John and Adam Black. Production in 1846 was 1,100 tons;
in 1847 was 1,000 tons. Abandoned 1851.
|
| Monroe |
Cochran & Fulton (Caldwell)
Cochran Fulton; W. B. Fetzer & Co.; Cochran & Timblin (History) |
|
- Located on Piney Creek, in eastern Monroe
Township, on the road between Reidsburg and Greenville. Height
30' (inside); 8' bosh. Cold blast. Produced 1,000
tons in 1845 and 1847; 1,250 tons in 1855. Abandoned 1882.
Dismantled Summer, 1922.
|
| Mt. Pleasant |
J. P. Brown (Caldwell)
G. W. Corbet, Solomon Cyphert, & George Reynolds; J. P. Brown
(History) |
1849 |
- Later called Corsica. Height 30'; 8'
bosh. Located in Clarion Township, northwest of Corsica
and slightly north of the turnpike. Built by G. W. Corbet,
Solomon Cyphert, & George Reynolds. Average annual production
about 500 tons from nearby ore. Sold to J. P. Brown in 1850.
|
| Perry |
Welsh & Co. |
|
- Production in 1847 was 1,000 tons.
|
| Pike |
Lawson, Duff & Orr
Hunter Orr |
1844 (Caldwell)
1845 (Beck) |
- Located on Wildcat Run, three-quarters of
a mile north of Lawsonham. Height 30'; 8' bosh. Steam
- hot blast, but originally cold blast stack. Hunter Orr
was owner/manager. Production in 1845 and 1847 was 1,700
tons; 1856 was 1,500 tons from limestone ore in coal beds near
furnace. Suspended production 1858 for a while. Dismantled
by 1887. Blew out 1868-9.
|
| Polk |
Christian Myers (Caldwell,
History)
Nelson Hetherington (Caldwell)
Lyon, Shorb & Co. (History) |
1844 (Caldwell)
1845 (Beck) |
- Located near Reidsburg in Monroe Township.
Steam cold blast. Named for President James K. Polk,
but the name was changed when Myers became angry with Polk. Ore
and timber became scarce at Clarion Furnace, so Polk was built
as its successor by Christian Myers, who renamed it Martha after
his wife. Later owned and managed by Myers' son-in-law,
Nelson Hetherington; Hetherington was manager most of the time.
Bought by Lyon, Shorb & Co., but never operated by it.
Production was 1,000 originally (and in 1847); in 1854 was
1,260 tons. Dismantled 1856 because of scarce timber.
|
| Prospect |
Alexander & Moore (Caldwell)
H. Alexander & McElroy; Moore, Painter & Co. (History) |
1845 |
- Located on Cherry Run, 1 mile south of Callensburg.
Height 30'; 8' bosh. Steam - cold blast. Managed by owner, William
Moore, under Moore, Painter & Co. ownership. Produced 1,450
tons of mill iron in only 39.25 weeks in 1856 from blue coal measure
limestone ore mined within 3.5 miles of the furnace. Abandoned
1862.
|
| Redbank |
Reynolds & Moorhead |
1859 |
- Located at the mouth of Redbank Creek. First
stack 39' high and 11' bosh; later 64' high. Built by Thomas
McCulloch, formerly of Lyon, Shorb & Co. Alexander Reynolds
was later his partner; Moorhead then replaced McCulloch. Successor
to Old Redbank Furnace across the creek in Armstrong County. Originally
used coke made in pits and averaged 95 tons a week. Still
in blast in 1877. This facility had 40 coke ovens working
in connection with the furnace in 1887. Furnace capacity
was 150 tons per week. Abandoned January, 1883. In
February, 1887, historian A. J. Davis believed the furnace would
reopen soon.
|
| Richland |
Keating & Bencel (Caldwell)
John Keating & J. Vensel (History) |
1846 |
- Located on a small branch of Turkey Run in
Richland Township. Height 30'; 8' bosh. Steam - cold blast.
Built by John Keating & J. Vensel. Averaged 550
tons in 1854-1856.
|
| St. Charles |
|
|
- See Cocheco.
|
| Sarah |
Samuel F. Plumer (Caldwell)
Jennings, Morey & Co. (History) |
1860 |
- Located at the bottom of the bend of the
Allegheny River, about 1 mile above Catfish. Plumer built
it after giving up part ownership in Prospect Furnace. Plumer
named it for his wife. Used coke as fuel. Abandoned
about 1867.
|
| Shippenville |
Richard Shippen & Jacob Black |
1831 (Caldwell)
1832 (Beck, History) |
- Located at the junction of Deer and Paint
Creeks, 1 mile southeast of Shippenville. Hot blast. Height
32'; 9' bosh. Managed by Robert Montgomery and David McKim.
Produced 1,200 tons in 1845; Rupp listed 1847 production
as 12,000 tons; 1,500 tons in 1856. Abandoned 1859. Also
had an associated forge, the only one in Clarion County, located
about 1 mile farther down Deer Creek; together, they produced
50 tons of bar iron (annually?).
|
| Sligo |
Lyon, Shorb & Co. |
1845 |
- Located on Licking Creek near Sligo borough
in Piney Township. Named for Sligo, headquarters of the
company's iron works near Pittsburgh. Owners William Lyon
(of Pittsburgh), J. P. Lyon (Sligo), Anthy Shorb, and Thomas McCullough
(Sligo). Steam - originally cold blast. Changed to
hot blast in 1857. Used chills. Production in 1845
and 1847 was 1,500 tons. Produced 2,400 tons rolling mill
iron in 1856. Abandoned 1871.
|
| Tippecanoe |
Black & Maxwell |
1844 |
- Named for "Tippecanoe and Tyler too." Located
on Canoe Creek, 1.5 miles above Eagle Furnace. Steam - cold
blast. Operated by King and Maxwell. Production 1,000
tons in 1845 and 1847. Abandoned 1851.
|
| Washington |
D. Long & H. Blackstone (Caldwell,
History)
H. Blackstone & Co. (Rupp)
Lanier & Co. (History) |
1846 |
- Located in extreme southwest corner of Clarion
Township, about a half mile north of Monroe Furnace. Height
30' (inside); 8.5' bosh. Steam - cold blast. Produced
1,000 tons in 1846 and 1847. Produced 706 tons in Spring,
1885; blew out. Standing in 1924 and mistakenly thought
to be the only extant Clarion County furnace at that time.
|
| Wildcat |
Lawson & Flick (Caldwell)
John L. Miller & James M. Freeman (History) |
1844 (Caldwell)
1843 (Beck, History) |
- Located on Wildcat Run, 1 mile southeast
of Rimersburg. Sometimes called Franklin. Built by
Lawson & Flick. Height 28'; 7.5' bosh. Production
1,000 tons in 1845; 1,380 tons in 1847 (Beck,
History - Rupp listed 1,000). Steam - cold blast.
Blown out 1857; not abandoned until 1863.
|
