Valley Furnace - Valley Furnace, WV
Posted by: 
uccacher
N 39° 11.768 W 079° 52.020
17S E 597838 N 4339153
Iron furnace ruins visible from West Virginia Route 38 just east of Valley Furnace, WV
Waymark Code: WMCJH2
Location: West Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 09/12/2011
Views: 5
From "History of Barbour County", by Hu Maxwell (1899:
"The furnace on Brushy Fork was built in 1848 and was used six years. The blast was operated first by water-power and afterwards by an [steam] engine (believed to have been the first in Barbour County, about 1850.) It was thirty-nine feet high when built, but is little more than half of that now, much of the stone of which it was built having been removed for various purposes. The fuel was charcoal, and about 9,000 pounds of iron were produced a day. This was hauled by mule teams to Fairmont, where it was loaded on steamers. The furnace stands on a seam of coal which was not used for fuel."
The furnace is located in a fenced area but is visible from a pull off near the historical marker that describes the furnace. It looks as if this was once a park like setting with informational kiosks but has not been maintained in many years
Visit Instructions:
Please post a photo of you or your GPS with the iron furnace ruins.