Spring House [Ironmaster's] - Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site - Elverson, PA
N 40° 12.359 W 075° 46.378
18T E 434218 N 4450906
Nestled into the ground, this Spring House, with its spring still running through it, is a cool place to be during a hot day at Hopewell. The temperature was at least 25 degrees cooler than the outside.
Waymark Code: WMCC0J
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 08/20/2011
Views: 8
Way back, when the agrarian lifestyle was still our cultural mainstay, people needed a way to collect fresh water and keep it cold. If you ever wondered how that was accomplished, this is it. This house was built over a spring. Its "basement" or foundation was sunk deep enough to have it submerged within the spring itself. This spring house kept the workers and residents hydrated and healthy. In addition to providing clean drinking water, the spring house also served as a laundry where clothes were washed. Containers of food, milk and butter would last longer when put in the cold spring water so they were stored here as well. The fireplace in the spring house was used to melt down fat or lard for making soap. In the autumn, bubbling kettles of apple butter drew crowds of folk after work to this location, much like a local tap room does for its local denizens today.
C. 1806 structure needed to run Ironmaster's House; provided drinking/cooking water, & cooling area for milk/butter; 1808 S addition w/ fireplace/chimney used for washing/cooking; restored 1965. Meets NR Criteria A & C for architecture & association with industrial history. The structure is classified as 017.
his circa 1806 dependency illustrates the magnitude of work that was required to run the Ironmaster's House (the Big House). The building provided drinking and cooking water & served as an "ice box" for cooling milk and butter for the Big House & its boarders. An 1808 addition on the south end of the structure with fireplace and chimney was used to boil water for washing & cooking and to render lard. A later concrete floor was removed 1963-64 and the building was completely restored in 1965.
From the nomination form:
Short Physical Description
Short Significance Description:
C. 1806 structure needed to run Ironmaster's House; provided drinking/cooking water, & cooling area for milk/butter; 1808 S addition w/ fireplace/chimney used for washing/cooking; restored 1965. Meets NR Criteria A & C for architecture & association with industrial history.
Long Physical Description
This circa 1806 dependency illustrates the magnitude of work that was required to run the Ironmaster's House (the Big House). The building provided drinking and cooking water & served as an "ice box" for cooling milk and butter for the Big House & its boarders. An 1808 addition on the south end of the structure with fireplace and chimney was used to boil water for washing & cooking and to render lard. A later concrete floor was removed 1963-64 and the building was completely restored in 1965.
