Lock Ridge Park
Encyclopedia
Lock Ridge Park is a park built around a historic iron ore blast furnace
just outside of Alburtis, Pennsylvania
, in the Lehigh Valley
region of the state.
near its junction with the East Pennsylvania Railroad. The company was taken over the next year by the Thomas Iron Company
, and a second furnace put in blast shortly thereafter. The iron industry in the Lehigh Valley
was then flourishing, and the Lock Ridge furnaces (designated No. 7 and No. 8 by Thomas Iron) were typical of the time. They used a hot blast
to burn anthracite fuel (rather than the hitherto common charcoal
) a technology brought to the United States by the company's founder, David Thomas
, in 1839. However, by the early 20th century, the furnaces were, despite sporadic improvements, technologically out-of-date, and were reputedly the last anthracite iron
furnaces to operate in the United States. President B.F. Fackenthal, of Thomas Iron, recommended they be decommissioned upon his resignation in 1913.
However, Fackenthal's successor, Ralph Sweetser, pursued the opposite course. No. 8 furnace stack was rebuilt in 1914, and No. 7 the following year. Concurrently, anthracite was replaced by coke
as a fuel for the furnaces. However, modernization was not enough to save the Lock Ridge furnaces, and iron was last made there in 1921.
The furnaces were sold to William Butz, who dismantled most of the buildings for scrap iron and lumber. However, the masonry structures were allowed to remain, albeit in a decayed condition. The slag dumps on the property were crushed, screened, and used for roofing and fill by the Lehigh Slag Company until 1958. Little-used since the closing of the furnaces, the Catasauqua and Fogelsville's line through the site was torn up in the 1940s. With industrial operations on the property long complete, it was donated by the Butz family to Lehigh County
for use as a park.
, which flows through the park grounds, offers limited fishing. The park also features a Little League
baseball field and a picnic pavilion with restrooms and a fireplace. Visitors to the park may tour the furnace room, which has since been rebuilt, the engine house, and the original cast house built in 1868. The park also features a self-guided walking tour of the site.
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
just outside of Alburtis, Pennsylvania
Alburtis, Pennsylvania
Alburtis is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is a suburb of Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state.The population of Alburtis was 2,117 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
, in the Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
region of the state.
History
The park preserves portions of the former Lock Ridge Iron Works. The first furnace at the site was built in 1868 by the Lock Ridge Iron Company, on the line of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville RailroadCatasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad
The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad was built in the 1850s to transport iron ore from local mines in Lehigh and later Berks County to furnaces along the Lehigh River...
near its junction with the East Pennsylvania Railroad. The company was taken over the next year by the Thomas Iron Company
Thomas Iron Company
The Thomas Iron Company was a major iron-making firm in the Lehigh Valley from its organization in 1854 until its decline and eventual dismantling in the early 20th century. The firm was named in honor of its founder, David Thomas, who had emigrated to the United States in 1839 to introduce hot...
, and a second furnace put in blast shortly thereafter. The iron industry in the Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
was then flourishing, and the Lock Ridge furnaces (designated No. 7 and No. 8 by Thomas Iron) were typical of the time. They used a hot blast
Hot blast
Hot blast refers to the preheating of air blown into a blast furnace or other metallurgical process. This has the result of considerably reducing the fuel consumed in the process...
to burn anthracite fuel (rather than the hitherto common charcoal
Charcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
) a technology brought to the United States by the company's founder, David Thomas
David Thomas (industrialist)
David Thomas was a native of Wales who was influential in the birth of the Industrial Revolution in the US.-Development of the hot blast:David Thomas was born in Cadoxton, near Neath...
, in 1839. However, by the early 20th century, the furnaces were, despite sporadic improvements, technologically out-of-date, and were reputedly the last anthracite iron
Anthracite iron
Anthracite iron is the substance created by the smelting together of anthracite coal and iron ore.-Development of the process:Research into the smelting of iron using anthracite coal began in the 1820s...
furnaces to operate in the United States. President B.F. Fackenthal, of Thomas Iron, recommended they be decommissioned upon his resignation in 1913.
However, Fackenthal's successor, Ralph Sweetser, pursued the opposite course. No. 8 furnace stack was rebuilt in 1914, and No. 7 the following year. Concurrently, anthracite was replaced by coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
as a fuel for the furnaces. However, modernization was not enough to save the Lock Ridge furnaces, and iron was last made there in 1921.
The furnaces were sold to William Butz, who dismantled most of the buildings for scrap iron and lumber. However, the masonry structures were allowed to remain, albeit in a decayed condition. The slag dumps on the property were crushed, screened, and used for roofing and fill by the Lehigh Slag Company until 1958. Little-used since the closing of the furnaces, the Catasauqua and Fogelsville's line through the site was torn up in the 1940s. With industrial operations on the property long complete, it was donated by the Butz family to Lehigh County
Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
-Climate:Most of the county's climate is considered to fall in the humid continental climate zone. Summers are typically hot and muggy, fall and spring are generally mild, and winter is cold. Precipitation is almost uniformly distributed throughout the year....
for use as a park.
The Park Today
Lock Ridge Park was opened in August 1976 as a 59.2 acres (24 ha) park. The park is made up of the remains of the old furnace complex, now the Lock Ridge Furnace Museum, and the land surrounding it. Swabia CreekSwabia Creek
Swabia Creek, a tributary of Little Lehigh Creek, is a creek located in Berks and Lehigh Counties, Pennsylvania, in the United States.- Source :...
, which flows through the park grounds, offers limited fishing. The park also features a Little League
Little League
Little League Baseball and Softball is a non-profit organization in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States which organizes local youth baseball and softball leagues throughout the U.S...
baseball field and a picnic pavilion with restrooms and a fireplace. Visitors to the park may tour the furnace room, which has since been rebuilt, the engine house, and the original cast house built in 1868. The park also features a self-guided walking tour of the site.