THE CHARCOAL IRON INDUSTRY OF THE
HANGING ROCK IRON DISTRICT--ITS IN-
FLUENCE ON THE EARLY DEVELOP-
MENT OF THE OHIO VALLEY
BY WILBUR STOUT
INTRODUCTION
The Hanging Rock Iron District, as
defined by the
iron masters, embraced the furnaces and
furnace lands
and also the adjacent properties over
which iron ores,
limestones, and charcoal were gathered.
It included
parts of Carter, Boyd and Greenup
Counties, Kentucky,
and parts of Lawrence, Scioto, Gallia,
Jackson, Vinton
and Hocking Counties, Ohio.
The district has an elliptical shape, a
length of more
than 100 miles, a maximum width of 28
miles, and a
trend of 18 degrees east of north,
which is close to that
of the strike of the rock strata. The
area grew by ex-
pansion along the outcrop of the ore
beds as the lines of
transportation were pushed farther and
farther out
from the original means, the Ohio
River. Within this
field all the raw materials necessary
for the smelting of
charcoal iron were provided by nature
in abundant
quantity.
The area south of the Ohio River was
roughly 510
square miles and that north of this
stream 1,290 square
miles. The district, in 1875, included
69 charcoal
furnaces and 16 coal or coke furnaces,
the latter repre-
(72)