Grand River in Livingston County, Kentucky — The American South (East South Central)
Grand Rivers Furnace
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Iron Made in Kentucky
Photographed by Sandra Hughes, September 14, 2011
1. Grand Rivers Furnace Marker
Grand Rivers Furnace. Built ½ mile west, 1890-91, by the Grand Rivers Coal, Iron and Railroad Co. Two stacks, each one 60 ft high with a maximum inner diameter of 13½ ft., together could produce 45,000 tons of iron yearly, using coal for fuel until 1901, and coke thereafter. These blast furnaces were operated intermittently until dismantled in 1921.
Iron Made in Kentucky. A Major producer since 1791, Ky ranked 3rd in US in 1830s, 11th in limestone supplied material for numerous furnaces making pig iron, utensils, munitions in the Hanging Rock, Red River, Between Rivers, Rolling Fork, Green River Regions. Charcoal~furnace era ended in 1880s with depletion of ore and timber and use of modern methods.
Erected 1970 by Kentucky Historical Society and Kentucky Department of Highways. (Marker Number 1368.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce. In addition, it is included in the Appalachian Iron Furnaces, and the Kentucky Historical Society series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1791.
Location. 37° 0.103′ N, 88° 14.328′ W. Marker is in Grand River, Kentucky, in Livingston County. It is on Commerce Avenue. Touch for map.
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Regionally, this marker is in Kentucky’s Jackson Purchase. It is also in the American Midwest, in the South, in the Upper South, and in the Ohio River Valley. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Grand Rivers Iron Furnace (approx. Ό mile away); Kentucky Dam (approx. 1.8 miles away); Propelling The Water (approx. 1.9 miles away); The TVA System of Multi-Purpose Dams (approx. 2 miles away); Andrew Jackson Smith / Medal of Honor (approx. 2.8 miles away); Andrew Jackson Smith (approx. 2.8 miles away); (Kelly Furnace) (approx. 5.1 miles away); Suwanee Furnace / Iron Made in Kentucky (approx. 5.1 miles away).
Photographed by Sandra Hughes, September 14, 2011
2. Iron Made in Kentucky Marker
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, April 3, 2021
3. Grand River Furnace / Iron Made in Kentucky Marker
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, April 3, 2021
4. Grand River Furnace / Iron Made in Kentucky Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on April 9, 2021. It was originally submitted on September 16, 2011, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. This page has been viewed 1,452 times since then and 29 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 16, 2011, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. 3, 4. submitted on April 4, 2021, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
