Furnace Town - Timeline

: History

1780's Prospecting in the swamps of Nassawango Creek by Joseph Widener of Philadelphia Land Deals by Milby and Waples of Delaware. Acquired 4800 acres by 1830.
1828 Maryland Iron Company formed: 8 Commissioners from PA, NY, ME, MD, DE
1829 Mark Richards (a Commissioner above) shut down his iron furnace, Speedwell, in New Jersey and came to the Nassawango Furnace as Iron Master.
1830 - 1832 Nassawango Furnace (also called Naseongo or Nasseongo) was built, under direction of Lewis Walker. Included wheel race, canal (mile-long), locks, upgrades of gristmill and sawmill, waterwheel, town for 300 workers. Site on about 30 acres, which were clear-cut.
1828 - 1835 Nassawango Furnace in production under The Maryland Iron Company.
1836 July 13 The property was sold to Benjamin Jones at a sheriff's sale.
1837 Jan. 28 Jones sold the property to John G. Dean of Maine and Benjamin Weston.
1837 Dec Dean and Weston sold it to Thomas A. Spence at a sheriff's sale for $3,000.00. He bought everything, including "60,000 bushels of [char]coal in the houses", "5,2000 bushels in the pits", "3,000 cords of new wood on the Dennis Farm."
1835-1837 Spence added the Hot Blast System ("state of the art) to the Furnace.
1849 Spence went bankrupt. The Furnace could no longer compete on the national market due to lack of railroad transportation and the better quality iron ores in Pennsylvania, New York and around the Great Lakes.
1850 When the Furnace shut down, there were no jobs available. Families at Furnace Town moved on to other Furnaces or other places where work was available.
1860 By this time, Furnace Town was a Ghost Town. The land and the "town" were purchased by George S. Richardson and George H. Marten. The Church, know as the Shingle Meeting House, was used into the late 1800's.
1912 The property of nearly 5000 acres was bought by Senator John Walter Smith and was called The Nassawango Furnace Property.
1925 John Walter Smith died, and the property passed to his daughter, Georgie Smith Foster.
1962 The Fosters deeded 12 acres to The Worcester County Historical Society.
1962 - 1978 Worcester County Historical Society began a systematic long range program to stabilize the furnace and cut back the growth of the previous 100 years, and to interpret the site as an Iron Furnace Village. Research was done. Period buildings were moved in [note: everything made of wood had rotted; only the brick Furnace survived] including a Church, Blacksmith Shop, former Church used as a Museum, Voting House, Broomhouse, Printshop; and an Out House was built.
1978 - 1982 Furnace Town Foundation Inc. was formed, a nonprofit group dedicated to the restoration and interpretation of the furnace site as a museum for public visitation.
1983 - present Buildings were accepted and placed, including a Woodworker's Shop and a Farm Implement Building. Artisans were trained to interpret crafts and life in the period 1820 - 1850. The Pavilion was constructed. The Charging Ramp was built to once-again allow access to the top of the Furnace. A Visitor Center was built in coordination with The Nature Conservancy, and a Lifestyles Building was moved in.