Historic marker recognizing pioneering technique in iron industry to be dedicated Sunday
A Pennsylvania State Historical Marker recognizing a pioneering technique that revolutionized the iron industry 200 years ago will be dedicated at 3 p.m. Sunday in Menallen Township.
Approved by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, the marker commemorates the first Iron Puddling Furnace in the U.S., a process that produced workable iron bars faster and more economically than the existing method.
In conjunction with the PHMC, the Fayette County Historical Society is organizing the dedication ceremony for the marker, which is being installed on property at the Uniontown Kawasaki Can-Am dealership owned by Rich and Wendy Travalena on Route 51 near the intersection with Laurel Hill Road.
The site is in the village of Upper Middletown, about four miles north of Uniontown, and close to Chestnut Ridge where ironmaking started in western Pennsylvania in the late 18th century.
The society will follow the marker dedication in Upper Middletown with a reception at its headquarters in the Abel Colley Tavern at 7083 National Pike, Route 40, in Menallen Township.
The event also marks the opening of the society’s latest exhibit called “The History of the Iron Industry in Fayette County” that runs through Oct. 14. The exhibit will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays and by appointment. Admission will be $5 but there is no admission charge this Sunday during the reception.
“This is the 200th anniversary and I think I’m as excited about the dedication as I am about people being able to meet Dr. Norman Samways,” said Chris Buckelew of Uniontown, historical society president. “We were a partner in this but the driving force was Dr. Norman Samways.”
Samways, of Pittsburgh, is a retired metallurgist who worked at Jones and Laughlin Steel Corp. and as technical editor of the Association of Iron and Steel Engineers. He researched and documented the history of the Iron Puddling Process.
According to the historical society, brittle blast furnace pig iron was previously transformed into malleable bars that could be worked by blacksmiths into farm implements and household articles in an inefficient method that involved multiple reheating and forging under massive, water-powered hammers. The Puddling Process involved a novel furnace design that incorporated melting and refining followed by a rolling operation.
“It produced workable iron bars in a single heating operation that was significantly faster and more economic,” the release noted.
Introduction of the process in Upper Middletown, according to the release, is attributed to Welsh immigrant Thomas Lewis and ironmaster Isaac Meason of Dunbar Township.
Lewis immigrated to the United States in 1815 to interest American ironmasters in the process based on his experience in South Wales. Meason saw the advantages and funded the venture. The plant began operating successfully on Sept. 15, 1817.
The Puddling Process was widely adopted in America with a peak of 5,265 furnaces reached in 1884 before being superseded by other techniques.
The Puddling Process also influenced labor relations as the furnace operators, the Puddlers, formed the first ironworkers union in 1858. The Sons of Vulcan became the United Steelworkers.
Speakers at Sunday’s dedication include Kenneth Turner of the PHMC: Ian Samways, who is Norman Samways’ son and past president of the Welsh North American Association; and Bucklew. Mary Tickner, of Uniontown, a direct descendant of Lewis, will be recognized.
The historical society’s new exhibit examines Fayette County’s ironmaking history from late 18th century to mid- 19th century in posters designed by board member Joy Stewart of Uniontown.
The exhibit also includes historic photos of iron furnace ruins, and historic documents that pertain to the Meason and other families involved in the iron industry, such as daybooks, a survey and land patent as well as an 1853 passport for Isaac Meason’s grandson George J. Ashman. There is also a military commission signed by President John Adams for James Ashman, who married Mary Meason and was George J. Ashman’s father, and a military commission signed by Abraham Lincoln for David Veech, who was married to Louisa Ashman, a granddaughter of Isaac Meason.
More information is available by visiting www.fayettehistoricalsociety.org or the society’s Facebook page or calling 724-439-4422.