Name/Title
S16.03.063Description
Keystone Furnace in Bloomfield Township, Jackson County, Ohio. Keystone Furnace was built in 1848 and ceased operation in 1885. Keystone Furnace is located near Raccoon Creek. It is one of more than 40 iron furnaces that operated in southeastern Ohio from about 1840 to 1890. During this time extensive oak-hickory forests were clear-cut to provide charcoal for the furnaces, where ore from nearby mines was smelted. For more than a half century some of the best iron in the world flowed from these furnaces. The discovery of richer, more abundant ores in Michigan and Minnesota brought Ohio’s iron industry to an end. The image was taken by Horace R. Collins on February 27, 1968.
REVIEW
Bedrock is from the Pennsylvanian Geologic Period.
History Text comes from Cooper Hollow Wildlife Area (Ohio Division of Wildlife, Publication 20).
See the History Section of Buckeye Furnace's website at <a href="http://buckeyefurnace.com/gpage2.html" rel="noreferrer nofollow">buckeyefurnace.com/gpage2.html</a> quoting from the book The History of the Iron Industry in Jackson County, Ohio by the Jackson Historical Society.
This slide image included in the USGS National Digital Catalog for NGGDPP Grant G15AP00115 in FY2015.Context
Rock furnace covered with dirt and weeds. Keystone Furnace, Jackson County Ohio.