Cedar Grove Iron Furnace
The furnace was one of the earliest steam-powered industrial sites in the region, a fact especially notable considering its isolation from any major population center. It utilized hot blast Scottish smelting techniques that had only recently been developed, and was able to produce over 1,400 tons of pig iron annually. The furnace operated until February, 1862 when it was shelled by Union gunboats USS Conestoga, USS Tyler, and USS Lexington.
Cedar Grove Iron Furnace is the only remaining double-stack charcoal furnace in Tennessee. It is constructed of local hand-carved limestone, stands 30 feet all, and measures 31 feet by 52 feet at the base. Most of the iron ore processed by the furnace was mined nearby in the area of Marsh Creek and was transported by mule-drawn carts for processing at the furnace. Smelted pig-iron would then be loaded onto river boats at the nearby landing on the Tennessee River. Production at the site ended around 1862.
References
Media related to Cedar Grove Iron Furnace at Wikimedia Commons
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ "Cedar Grove Iron Furnace". The Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ "Cedar Grove Iron Furnace". The Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ Gavin, Michael Thomas (Spring 2005). "From Bands of Iron to Promise Land: The African-American Contribution to Middle Tennessee's Antebellum Iron Industry". Tennessee Historical Quarterly. 64 (1): 31. JSTOR 42628560. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
- ^ Younger, Lillye. "Perry County, Tennessee History". Perry County, TNGenWeb. Archived from the original on March 14, 2022. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
From Lillye Younger, People of Action (Decatur County Printers, 1983)
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