Tannehill Ironworks fieldtrip

Here is a picture from our fieldtrip this past week to Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park.

This is part of the blast furnace used to produce pig iron--a major supplier of iron and munitions for the Confederacy. Birmingham, Alabama and the surrounding areas were founded on iron production because of its unique sedimentary make-up. All of the components for producing pig iron (iron ore, coal, and limestone) are found in this area, making production easier than other locations which had to have one or more of these components delivered by rail. During the Civil War, Union troops destroyed or heavily damaged most of the furnaces in order to squelch munitions production. Only the stones you see in this photograph are from the original blast furnace that stood here. When partially destroyed in March of 1865, these two furnaces were producing over 20 tons of iron for the arsenal in Selma, AL.