The Scranton Iron Furnaces is an historic, American manufacturing site located in

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

. The site preserves

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

's rich iron making history in

. It is near the

Steamtown National Historic Site Steamtown National Historic Site (NHS) is a List of railway museums, railroad museum and Heritage railway, heritage railroad located on in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, at the site of the former Scranton yards of the Delaware, Lackawanna and ...

in Scranton. The site has been managed by the

Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) is the governmental agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, responsible for the collection, conservation, and interpretation of Pennsylvania's heritage. The commission cares for hist ...

since 1971 and is part of the

Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum The Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum preserves the heritage of anthracite coal mining in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania and is located in McDade Park in Scranton. It features exhibits detailing the industrial history of northeastern Pennsy ...

complex. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1991, as the Lackawanna Iron and Coal Company Furnace.

History

19th century

This historic site preserves the remains of four stone

blast furnace A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally pig iron, but also others such as lead or copper. ''Blast'' refers to the combustion air being supplied above atmospheric pressure. In a ...

s that were built between 1848 and 1857. Iron production on the site was started by Scranton, Grant & Company in 1840. Later, the furnaces were operated by the Lackawanna Iron & Coal Company. In 1847, iron rails for the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Northeastern United States, originally connecting Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City, New Jersey, with Lake Erie at Dunkirk, New York. The railroad expanded west to Chicago following its 1865 ...

were made at the site. By 1865, Scranton, Grant & Company had the largest iron production capacity in the United States. In 1875, steel production was initiated at the site. By 1880, the furnaces produced 125,000 tons of

pig iron Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate good used by the iron industry in the production of steel. It is developed by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with si ...

, one of the main uses of which was the manufacture of t-rails.

20th century

In 1902, the plant was closed when production was shifted to

Lackawanna, New York Lackawanna is a city in Erie County, New York, United States, just south of the city of Buffalo in western New York State. The population was 19,949 at the 2020 census. It is one of the fastest-growing cities in New York, growing in populati ...

. ''Note:'' This includes The site has been managed by the

since 1971 and is part of the

complex. It was added to the

in 1991, as the Lackawanna Iron and Coal Company Furnace.

21st century

During the 2000 U.S. presidential election campaign, former

U.S. vice president The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. Th ...

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...

held a campaign rally at the site.

References

Official Scranton Iron Furnaces website

{{National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Industrial buildings completed in 1848 Industrial buildings completed in 1857 Museums in Scranton, Pennsylvania Industry museums in Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania 1857 establishments in Pennsylvania