James,
Coincidentally, not long after your first posting re. VA Iron, I came across some indication that one ancestor hired out both his sons and some black workers to the furnace at Mossy Creek during one slow period on the farm. Reading your posts today, I finally got curious enough to google the development of iron industry in Va. Must confess, I stayed away from anything too technical.
Along with some basic information about VA iron and even a virtual tour, (for beginners like me!) the links below provided this explanation of an "iron plantation." Curious if the information seems accurate to you, and if this is the
type of furnace that interests you.
"Elizabeth Furnace is a typical example of these early furnaces. A self-contained community grew up around the furnace -- known colloquially as an "iron plantation" under the direction of the owner or "iron master". These communities (the forerunners of the company towns seen in the coal fields today) consisted of the mansion of the iron master, cottages for the laborers, tool and storage sheds, shops for carpenters and blacksmiths, a store, stables, for mules and oxen, schools for employees' children, and the furnace. The furnace itself was a pyramid of stone, varying in size, usually about 30 feet square at the base and 25 to 40 feet high. Furnaces were erected against the side of a small hill so that the charge (iron ore, limestone, and charcoal) could be carried or wheeled from the stockpile across a bridge and dumped into the stack at the top."
http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/gwj/lee/cultural/iron_charcoal_industry/index.shtml
http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/gwj/lee/cultural/iron_charcoal_industry/images/index.html
--Joanne
James Brothers <[log in to unmask]> wrote: I thought that I introduced a new topic- the early iron industry. But
all Anita wants to do is relate it back to slaves. There is a lot
more to discuss here. For instance the iron industry was one of the
first where ownership was by a group, rather than an individual.
There is also the entire issue of "Iron Plantations". Contrary to
popular belief these were not an industrial adaptation of the
agricultural plantation (they predate the American colonies).
I would be interested in any information anyone has concerning
bloomeries and fineries (not associated with blast furnaces). These
are smaller operations and as a result do not as readily show up in
either the documentary or archaeological record.
My research on the blast furnaces of Virginia has shown that many of
the accepted dates of construction and operation are incorrect. K
Bruce did a good job, but that was 70 years ago. A number of
documents have come to light since then and she had to read each
document and could not do word searches. Makes life a lot easier for
us (at least for those sources that have been digitized). It was for
that reason that I included the list I have compiled.
James Brothers, RPA
[log in to unmask]
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Loretta Kelldorf
> Sent: Monday, June 18, 2007 11:50 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: New Subject
>
> Perhaps it is time to begin a new topic of discussion. With the long
> history of VA, surely there are other interests than slavery. What
> is the
> list interested in discussing?
>
> Pirates on the outer banks?
> Federalist Papers?
> How geography affected development?
> Indian traders?
> Shipping and/or the VA navy?
> Huguenot settlements ?
> The War of 1812 ?
>
> Someone please be brave enough to jump in with a new topic of
> discussion.
> Let us avoid chastising each other and getting dangerously close to
> flaming.
>
> Loretta
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