Catoctin Furnace, Maryland facts for kids

Catoctin Furnace is a small, historic community. It is located in northern Frederick County, Maryland, USA. You can find it along Route 15, between the towns of Frederick and Thurmont. This area is well-known for its old iron-making site, called the Catoctin Furnace Historic District.

The Story of Catoctin Furnace

The Catoctin Iron Furnace was built in 1774. Four brothers named Thomas, Baker, Roger, and James Johnson started it. Their main goal was to make a basic type of iron called "pig iron." They got the raw material, a rock called hematite, from nearby mines.

How the Village Grew

A small village grew up around the iron furnace. Workers who helped run the furnace lived there. They lived in houses made of stone and logs. These homes were owned by the company that ran the furnace.

At its busiest time, the village was quite large. It had three furnaces for making iron. There was also a sawmill to cut wood and a gristmill to grind grain. The community even had its own school. About eighty houses were available for the workers. All of this was spread across a huge area of 11,350 acres.

Why the Furnace Closed

By 1903, it became very hard to keep the small iron furnace running. New technologies were changing how iron was made. Also, there were new rules about protecting the environment. Because of these challenges, the furnace finally had to close down.

After the furnace stopped working, many people in the village lost their jobs. They had to look for work outside of Catoctin Furnace. In 1923, the property was sold to new owners. The families living in the company-owned houses were then given a chance to buy their own homes.