Lucinda Furnace, Clarion County, Pennsylvania

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Lucinda - A nice sign greets you at Lucinda Furnace on Paint Creek in Knox Township. It was built in 1833(peb) or 1836(jac) by James Humes and George B. Hamilton. The sign at the furnace site states that it operated from about 1815 to about 1860, but 1815 was quite early for a Clarion County Furnace and we suspect this source is mistaken. It was a hot blast charcoal furnace 30' high with a 7'10" bosh. Humes became sole proprietor. In 1837 the listed owner was the Geo. B. Hamilton & Co. and 50 hands were working(pbd). In 1843 John F. Steinman, assignee of Humes, sold the furnace to James Buchanan (later U.S. president) and John Reynolds, of Cornwall, Lebanon County. At the same time they purchased 4,351 acres of land in Knox Township for $20,500. Buchanan visited the furnace in June 1843. The furnace was leased to Reynolds and Nathan Evans who managed it. Produced 1200 tons in 1845 and only 1500 in 1856. The furnaces output had a high reputation among mill and foundrymen. The iron was shipped to Pittsburgh from the lower bridge at Clarion(ajd). Abandoned in 1858 because of low prices and scarce lumber(hcc/s&t). Part of the stack was removed for road construction, and for retaining walls and foundations for properties nearby. There is very little left. (P)(V)(rp-1977, he,rp-2004).
Turn west from PA68 to SR4015 in the village of Lucinda. Follow it for about 1.3 miles, or until shortly before SR4015 goes over the creek. At this point a smaller lane (Fairview Drive) continues straight ahead parallel to the creek. About 200 feet down this lane the ruins are on the right side of the road and only about 20 feet from it. A sign besides the furnace tells its story. Only part of the structure remains. Most of it was removed when the road was widened. Hank Edenborn verified the GPS location in April 2004 We visited this site in Oct. 2004 and observed that several stone fences and building foundations appear to have stone that may have been taken from Lucinda furnace which remains in dismal condition.
GPS location 41º 18.880'N - 79º 23.271'W.(P,V) (he-rp2004)

Sign next to Lucinda Furnace - October 2004

Lucinda Furnace - November 1977

Lucinda Furnace - October 2004
Furnace Stones from Lucinda Furnace
Used as retaining wall for local residence - Octiober 2004
Lucinda Furnace Special Sources:
A Guide to the Old Stone Blast Furnaces of Western Pennsylvania, Myron B. Sharp and William H. Thomas (s&t)
Caldwell's Illustrated Historical Combination Atlas of Clarion Co. Pa. J. A. Caldwell(jac) 1877*
History of Clarion County, unknown compiler, cir 1976 (hcc)*
History of Clarion County A. J. Davis (ajd) ed. 1887*
Christian Myers, Migrant Iron Master and Founder of Clarion Co. Paul E. Beck(peb) Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Journal, undated.*
Unspecified Clarion Co. Sources from asterisk list above.(unk)
Hank Edenborn, Finleyville, PA (he)
Copyright © Richard Parks, Last updated May 12, , 2010