The Keystone Furnace was constructed in 1848 in the Hanging Rock Iron Region near Jackson, Ohio.
Keystone Furnace was constructed in 1848 1 by John Campbell and S. McConnel in the Hanging Rock Iron Region along Little Raccoon Creek south of Jackson, Ohio. 2 3 4 5 The furnace, named after a riverboat owned by the proprietors, featured a stack 33 feet high with a bosh 10 feet wide which allowed for a daily capacity of 12 tons. 3 4 However, early efforts by A.F. and P.M. McCarley to transport 55 tons of pig iron by boat down Raccoon Creek to the Ohio River were unsuccessful.
In 1853, Green Benner & Company acquired Keystone Furnace 3 4 and increased the stack to 36 feet in height, which allowed for a daily capacity of 24 tons. 3 Operations were temporarily halted between 1861 and 1863 due to the owners being elected to form the 27th Ohio Volunteer Infantry for the Civil War. In 1871, Keystone Furnace was purchased by Hezekiah Sanford Bundy and operated until 1885.
Directions: Keystone Furnace is located on private property along County Route 9 (Keystone Furnace Road) near Jackson, Ohio.
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Sources
- “Blast Furnaces.” History of Lower Scioto Valley, Ohio. Inter-State Publishing Company, 1884, pp. 495-498.
- “Jackson County: Railroad Era Commences.” A Standard History of the Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio. Ed. Eugene B. Willard et al. Vol. 1. 1916. Marceline, MO: Walsworth, n.d. 453-456. Print.
- Rowe, Frank H. “Franklin Furnace.” History of the Iron and Steel Industry in Scioto County, Ohio. Columbus: F.J. Heer, 1938. 80-82. Print.
- Markiel, J. Old Industry 2006. Articles.
- Willard, Eugene B., Daniel W. Williams, George O. Newman, and Charles B. Taylor. “The Iron Industries.” A Standard History of the Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio. Lewis Publishing Company, 1916, pp. 265-289.
