Lonaconing Furnace

Lonaconing Furnace is an abandoned pig iron furnace in Lonaconing, Maryland.

In 1836, the Maryland General Assembly authorized John H. Alexander and Phillip Tyson to establish the George’s Creek Coal & Iron Company and build a blast furnace in Lonaconing. ¹ This decision followed the discovery of iron ore and a substantial coal deposit in the George’s Creek valley Constructed between 1837 and 1839, the furnace stood 50 feet tall with a 50-foot square base and a 25-foot square top. It featured two tuyere arches with cast iron tubes for directing hot air into the hearth and a 60 horsepower steam engine powering a five-foot diameter, eight-foot-long blast cylinder. This system forced 3,500 cubic feet of air at 2.5 psi through the furnace, with an iron regulator controlling airflow. Air heated to 700° F entered the furnace through water-cooled nozzles called tuyeres, switching to a less efficient cold blast if water was scarce.

The Lonaconing Furnace required seven tons of coal to produce one ton of cast iron, processing a mixture of iron ore, coke, and limestone. ¹ It commenced operations on May 17, achieving a production rate of six tons per day by May 23. At its peak, the furnace employed 260 workers and produced 60 tons of pig iron weekly.

Initially, the company planned to transport pig iron to Williamsport by horse and wagon for shipment to Washington D.C. via the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal. ¹ However, in 1852, with the completion of the Baltimore & Ohio (B&O) Railroad to Cumberland, the iron was transported by tram to Clarysville and then by B&O railcars. Despite the speed of rail transport, it proved costlier than other methods. Competition from Pennsylvania furnaces using cheaper anthracite coal and reduced tariffs on Welsh coal imports led to the Lonaconing Furnace’s closure in 1855.

The Lonaconing Furnace was notable for being the first to successfully produce pig iron using coal and coke instead of charcoal. ¹ While pig iron production ceased in the George’s Creek valley, coal mining persisted into the 1990s.

The furnace was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in June 1973. It underwent restoration and became a focal point of a community park on the former Central School site, demolished in 1975.

Directions: Lonaconing Furnace is located along MD Route 36 in Lonaconing, Maryland.