What the heck is an Iron Bloomery?

Iron making evolved over a few thousand years. Using the ancient “bloomery” method, iron ore was converted directly into wrought iron by heating the ore while at the same time melting the ore’s impurities and squeezing them out with hand hammers. The bloomery furnace differs from a modern blast furnace because it does not actually melt iron. The bloomery operates at lower temperatures but still achieves the same result of separating metallic iron from undesirable elements.

We passed this iron bloomer ruin by the side of the road near PawPaw, West Virginia.

It was built in 1838, and produced up to 8500 tons of iron annually that was carried on rafts and flatboats down the Cacapon River, a tributary of the Potomac River.