Catoctin Iron Furnace's Beginnings
The Birth of an Industry and the Creation of a Legend
For more than 125 years, Isabella, Deborah and an unnamed stack; the three furnaces of Catoctin Furnace near Thurmont, Md.; produced hundreds of tons of pig iron annually that helped build the United States before there was a United States.
Catoctin Furnace’s Claim to Fame
The furnace’s real history is illustrative of industry in America. It even has its brush with fame because one of the early partners in the venture was Thomas Johnson, the first governor of Maryland. In later years, it has had U.S. Presidents beginning with Herbert Hoover camp or stay nearby.
That’s a proud history, a fine history, but the legends…
The legends lift the Catoctin Furnace from one of many iron-smelting furnaces in early Maryland to a linchpin of American history.
Some believe iron from Catoctin Furnace defended America with cannonballs for the Continental Army, furthered American ingenuity with parts for James Rumsey’s steamboat engine and changed naval warfare with the iron plates that protected the U.S.S. Monitor during the Civil War.
The truth, however, is somewhat different.
Ready materials
Despite a failed furnace on the west side of the Catoctin Mountains, the area south of Thurmont was a natural site for an iron furnace. The furnace in Washington County, Md. failed because the ore was not good quality. That wasn’t the case with the Catoctin Furnace operation. The iron ore for the furnaces came from three sites on the property. Two ore banks were located behind the furnace. The third site was a mile north and the largest of the three, measuring 800 feet by 2,000 feet.
When the ore was mined, first by hand and later by steam shovels, the iron ore was mixed with clay. It took seven tons of clay to produce one ton of ore. That one ton of iron was a good grade, though. It was 40 percent hydrous ferric oxide, limonite.
Not only was the iron ore good quality, but all of the needed materials to turn that ore into pig iron were also there. The Catoctin Mountains provided the needed timber for charcoal and basins for stream systems. Charcoal provided the heat for the whole process. Estimates are that the blast furnace used 800 bushels of charcoal a day. This required 5,000 to 6,000 cords of wood each year or an acre of 20 to 25 year old hardwood each day. Water was used to wash the clay from the ore and drive the water wheel, which operated the furnace bellows. Limestone from nearby quarries was added to the ore to serve as a flux to remove impurities.
Creating a Business
With an abundance of needed resources, it was only a matter of time before someone discovered all the ingredients for a successful mining operation. That someone was the Johnson Brothers and the time was 1774.
Under their ownership, they created a business that grew into a legend.
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