Oxford Furnace
Encyclopedia
Oxford Furnace is located in Oxford Township
, New Jersey
. The furnace was built in 1741 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on July 6, 1977.
, impure deposits called bog iron
. The furnace was built by Jonathan Robeson and Joseph Shippen, Jr., both of Philadelphia, and owned by the Shippen family who lived nearby in Shippen Manor
. A grist mill was built adjacent to the furnace in 1813. In 1835, it was the site of America's first successful use of the hot blast
, in which preheated air was blown into the furnace, cutting production time. Oxford Furnace operated until 1884, the longest of any of the colonial furnaces. The nearby Methodist Church was built from the old grist mill in 1913. A restoration of the furnace occurred between 1997 and 2001.
Oxford Township, New Jersey
Oxford Township is a Township in Warren County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the township population was 2,514...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. The furnace was built in 1741 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on July 6, 1977.
History
Oxford Furnace was the third furnace to be constructed in New Jersey and the first where iron ore was mined. The first two furnaces (Tinton Falls and Mount Holly) extracted ore from bogs in South JerseySouth Jersey
South Jersey comprises the southern portions of the U.S. state of New Jersey between the lower Delaware River and the Atlantic Ocean. The designation is a colloquial one, reflecting not only geographical but perceived cultural differences from the northern part of the state, with no official...
, impure deposits called bog iron
Bog iron
Bog iron refers to impure iron deposits that develop in bogs or swamps by the chemical or biochemical oxidation of iron carried in the solutions. In general, bog ores consist primarily of iron oxyhydroxides, commonly goethite...
. The furnace was built by Jonathan Robeson and Joseph Shippen, Jr., both of Philadelphia, and owned by the Shippen family who lived nearby in Shippen Manor
Shippen Manor
Shippen Manor is located in Oxford, New Jersey. The manor was built in 1755 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 20, 1984.-History:...
. A grist mill was built adjacent to the furnace in 1813. In 1835, it was the site of America's first successful use of the 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...
, in which preheated air was blown into the furnace, cutting production time. Oxford Furnace operated until 1884, the longest of any of the colonial furnaces. The nearby Methodist Church was built from the old grist mill in 1913. A restoration of the furnace occurred between 1997 and 2001.
External links
- View of Oxford Furnace via Google Street ViewGoogle Street ViewGoogle Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth that provides panoramic views from various positions along many streets in the world...