Pine Grove Furnace State Park is located along Mountain Creek in south-central Pennsylvania and is centered around the decommissioned Pine Grove Iron Works, a decommissioned pig iron furnace, and the Pine Grove community.
In 1764, George Stevenson, Robert Thornburg, and John Arthur constructed Pine Grove Iron Works, an iron furnace along Mountain Creek. It was the second of nine furnaces in Cumberland County. The furnace featured a 33-foot-high stack and was fueled by charcoal, using waterwheel-powered bellows for its cold air blast. The furnace smelted iron ore to produce cast iron items such as wagon wheel iron, fireplaces, kettles, stoves, and, later, components for Baldwin Locomotives.
In 1782, Michael Ege purchased the iron works and grew his business over the next 32 years until he owned the Pine Grove, Carlisle, Cumberland, and Holly furnaces. Michael’s eldest son, Peter Ege, inherited Pine Grove Iron Works. In 1829, Peter built a red brick, English Tudor-style mansion. The following year, he expanded his operations by constructing Laurel Forge, which reheated and hammered cast iron from Pine Grove to produce wrought iron.
The financial panic of 1837 bankrupted Pine Grove Iron Works. In 1864, Jay Cooke & Company purchased the ironworks and established the South Mountain Iron Company. They appointed Jackson C. Fuller as the furnace manager to oversee daily operations while the company’s business affairs were handled in Philadelphia.
Jay Cooke, often called the “Financier of the Civil War,” had raised $1.2 billion by selling federal treasury notes, earning him immense wealth by the war’s end. However, he faced financial ruin due to the post-war economic depression. Cooke went bankrupt, and the collapse of Jay Cooke & Company triggered the financial panic of 1873.
The South Mountain Iron Company was put up for sheriff’s sale in 1874 but remained unsold. In 1877, the railroad and ironworks were sold separately. Cooke reacquired the ironworks through his friend Fuller, forming the South Mountain Mining & Iron Company.
John Birkinbine became the furnace’s engineer. Concerned about the state’s dwindling forest reserves and aiming to demonstrate that charcoal-fueled iron furnaces could be operated with coke and coal, Birkinbine converted the furnace to a hot blast system in 1877 to increase capacity. He then remodeled it in 1878 to use coke and anthracite coal.
Iron production peaked in 1883 at 6,000 short tons. Iron production ended in 1895, and on September 12, 1913, the Pine Grove Iron Works was sold as part of three tracts that became the majority of the Pine Grove Division of the South Mountain Forest. In 1931, the land became Pine Grove Furnace State Park.
Fuller Lake, an iron ore quarry that filled with groundwater when mining ceased, became a popular swimming area. Laurel Lake, which had supplied waterpower for the Laurel Forge, also became a popular fishing and swimming spot.
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