Lockridge Furnace
Lockridge History
"The Lock Ridge Furnace: Iron Ore,Iron Horses, and Ironmen
Iron transformed Alburtis from a sleepyfarm village into an industrial giant.The railroad, the iron horse, steamedinto town in 1864, bringing togethernearby raw materials needed forironmaking. By 1868 Lock Ridge Furnacelit the skies, turning iron ore into theiron essential for a growing America.
In the late 1800s the Lock RidgeFurnace plant was a smelly, dirty, noisyinferno. Trains loaded with anthracitecoal to fuel the furnaces roared up tothe stockhouses. An endless stream ofrattling wagons hauled heavy loads oflocal iron ore, as well as the locallimestone used to extract the iron fromits ore.
Ironmen, including many Irish andGerman immigrants, worked in twelve-hourshifts. “Bottom men” shoved heavywheelbarrows full of iron ore,limestone, and anthracite coal ontoelevators. Above, “top men” waited todump these regional riches into LockRidge’s twin furnace stacks. Nearbystoves heated air, and roaring enginesblew it into the furnaces. This fieryblast made the furnaces hot enough toburn anthracite coal.
Day and night Lock Ridge’s furnacesflamed, separating iron from iron oreand shaping it into bars. Four times aday, sweating “casters” pulled the plugat the bottom of each furnace. Wearingprotective wooden shoes, casters guidedthe red-hot melted iron into bar-shapedchannels in the casthouses. When theiron cooled, casters swung crowbars tobreak the bars apart. Loaded onto traincars, the bars left for market.
Then the iron industry began movingwest. Western Pennsylvania’s softerbituminous coal could be made intocoke--the best fuel for ironmaking.Unable to compete with furnaces nearerthis new fuel, Lock Ridge closed in1921. Today, local preservation effortshave saved this relic of industrialmight for future generations. The LehighCounty Historical Society offers toursof the ruins and reconstructionsMay-September Sat. and Sun., 1-4 p.m.You can also enjoy a special day at thefurnace during the Spring Flingcommunity festival, noon-5 p.m. on thefirst Sunday of May."
Read More"The Lock Ridge Furnace: Iron Ore,Iron Horses, and Ironmen
Iron transformed Alburtis from a sleepyfarm village into an industrial giant.The railroad, the iron horse, steamedinto town in 1864, bringing togethernearby raw materials needed forironmaking. By 1868 Lock Ridge Furnacelit the skies, turning iron ore into theiron essential for a growing America.
In the late 1800s the Lock RidgeFurnace plant was a smelly, dirty, noisyinferno. Trains loaded with anthracitecoal to fuel the furnaces roared up tothe stockhouses. An endless stream ofrattling wagons hauled heavy loads oflocal iron ore, as well as the locallimestone used to extract the iron fromits ore.
Ironmen, including many Irish andGerman immigrants, worked in twelve-hourshifts. “Bottom men” shoved heavywheelbarrows full of iron ore,limestone, and anthracite coal ontoelevators. Above, “top men” waited todump these regional riches into LockRidge’s twin furnace stacks. Nearbystoves heated air, and roaring enginesblew it into the furnaces. This fieryblast made the furnaces hot enough toburn anthracite coal.
Day and night Lock Ridge’s furnacesflamed, separating iron from iron oreand shaping it into bars. Four times aday, sweating “casters” pulled the plugat the bottom of each furnace. Wearingprotective wooden shoes, casters guidedthe red-hot melted iron into bar-shapedchannels in the casthouses. When theiron cooled, casters swung crowbars tobreak the bars apart. Loaded onto traincars, the bars left for market.
Then the iron industry began movingwest. Western Pennsylvania’s softerbituminous coal could be made intocoke--the best fuel for ironmaking.Unable to compete with furnaces nearerthis new fuel, Lock Ridge closed in1921. Today, local preservation effortshave saved this relic of industrialmight for future generations. The LehighCounty Historical Society offers toursof the ruins and reconstructionsMay-September Sat. and Sun., 1-4 p.m.You can also enjoy a special day at thefurnace during the Spring Flingcommunity festival, noon-5 p.m. on thefirst Sunday of May."
