Following the end of the salt-making industry in Jackson County (1795–1826), the local economy revolved around agriculture. Though natural resources were abundant in the county, they remained untapped. In several isolated areas of southeastern Ohio, iron deposits had been found which resulted in limited production of iron. In the 1830s, four furnaces had been erected in Ohio with 12 more being built in the 1840s.

While several iron furnaces remain, Buckeye’s reconstructed furnace is the only one that, except for the trees that have grown since closing, is much as it was when it was operating.

See how pig iron was made. Buckeye Furnace is a reconstructed charcoal-fired blast furnace, one of many that once operated in southeastern Ohio’s Hanging Rock Iron Region. Learn how iron-making “towns” much like this one scattered across rural southern Ohio in the 19th century helped win the Civil War.

At this 270-acre site, see the furnace, originally built in 1852, which went out of blast for the last time in 1894. Also, tour reconstructed furnace buildings, a museum, and nature trails. Average visit time: Allow 1+ hours

Buckeye Furnace is managed locally by the Friends of Buckeye Furnace.