Historic Mills of Connecticut

Use (Historic)

• Mining, Primary Metals

Largest Documented Workforce

n/a

Historic Narrative

For historical significance see National Register nomination: http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NRHP/Text/77001401.pdf
Stuart, Hopson and Co. built the first blast furnace here in 1826. It was 28' high, charcoal-fired and used cold blast. The ore, a hematite yielding 60% iron, was dug from a mountainside in South Kent; charcoal and lime were also produced locally. In 1864, with additional investors, Kent Iron Co. was formed and a slightly larger, hot blast furnace replaced the earlier stack. Charcoal supply was a problem by this time, as the 1864 furnace was fired by a mixture of charcoal and anthracite. Kent Iron Co. rebuilt the stack to its present dimensions in 1870. Its battered walls, made of rough granite blocks in random ashlar, were 32' high in 1870, but erosion and vandalism have destroyed the upper 8'. Iron tie-rods reinforced against expansion. Arched openings break three of the walls, with the 14'-high hearth opening on the south side. Inside, bosh diameter is 9'; two layers of fire brick are partially intact and a great deal of brick and other debris has accumulated at the bottom of the furnace. None of the blast system remains except for a vague depression that was once the power canal which carried water from the dam (across the Housatonic River) to the wheelhouse, where a breast wheel drove the blowing tub. The sheds that stored charging materials are gone, as are the frame structures that surrounded the operating furnace: the charging house atop the stack and casting house below. Foundations are all that remain of the saw and grist mills run by the iron company. Depletion of local charcoal and surface ore at South Kent caused the operation to slow to a halt in 1892.
Today the stack is on the grounds of the Sloane-Stanley Museum, which features a section-view model of the furnace, a diorama depicting the site in the 19th century, and iron-making artifacts including a slag fork and a cooling coil for a tuyere. (Roth)

Number of Existing Buildings

1

Dates of Construction

1870

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

• Blast furnace

Architectural Description

For description see National Register nomination: http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NRHP/Text/77001401.pdf

Exterior Material(s)

• Stone

Structural System(s)

• Load Bearing Masonry

Roof Form

n/a

Roof Material

n/a

Power Source

n/a

Condition

Good

Condition Notes

n/a

Specific Location

Between US Route 7 and the Housatonic River, north of the Kent town center. Also at the site, the Sloane Stanley Museum.

Adjacent To

• Railroad

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

n/a

Acreage

n/a

Use (Present)

• Other: Archaeological site

Form Completed By

n/a

Date

n/a

Bibliography

1. Clouette, Bruce. 1977. Kent Iron Furnace National Register Nomination No. 77001401. National Park Service.
2. Kent Furnace National Register of Historic Places State Archaeological Preserve. Record on file at SHP office, Hartford, CT.
3. Eric Sloane Museum & Kent Iron Furnace web site. Access.