Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site. Historic Resource Study

摘要

Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site encompasses 848.06 acres of land in southeastern Pennsylvania. The furnace site straddles the border between Berks and Chester counties and stands astride French Creek, a tributary of the Schuylkill River, which flows from the Appalachian Mountains across the Pennsylvania Piedmont and empties into the Delaware River at Philadelphia, 40 miles from Hopewell. The majority of the central historic area is approximately 500 feet above sea level, while the highest point within park boundaries, near its northern border, is approximately 900 feet above sea level. Southeastern Pennsylvania had already become known for its furnaces, forges, and bloomeries by the time Mark Bird began his iron-making operation at Hopewell about 1771. Bird actively supported the American Revolution and served as deputy quartermaster for the Continental Army, and it seems likely that Hopewell Furnace supplied cannon and shot for the American forces. Due to the financial difficulties of Bird and other early owners, Hopewell Furnace was sold several times in the eighteenth century before being purchased by the Buckley and Brooke families in 1800. These families retained ownership of the property until the Federal government purchased it in 1935. The furnace reached its peak of production and prosperity during the 1830s under the direction of manager Clement Brooke, and went out of blast for the final time in 1883. During its period of operation, which lasted from 1771 to 1883, the iron-making complex at Hopewell comprised several buildings, including the furnace, wheel house, bridge house, connecting shed, cast house, and various sheds and shops. The operation produced pig iron and cast iron products such as stove plates and kettles, employing, for most of its history, the cold blast method of iron production and using charcoal for fuel.