Shelby Iron Company facts for kids
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| Location | 10268 County Road 42, Shelby, AL 35143 |
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| Type | Local History Museum |
The Shelby Iron Company was a big company that made iron in a town called Shelby, Alabama. This company was very important because it made iron for the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. Even though its main factory was destroyed near the end of the war, the company kept making iron until the early 1900s. Today, you can visit the Shelby Iron Works Park to learn about its history.
Contents
A Look Back: The Shelby Iron Works Story
The Shelby Iron Works, also known as the Shelby Iron Company, started a long time ago. On December 29, 1842, a man named Horace Ware bought land south of Columbiana, AL. This land is now the town of Shelby, Alabama.
Horace Ware also bought land with lots of trees and hematite ore. Hematite is a type of rock that contains iron. He found these materials all over Shelby County.
Building the Iron Furnace
With these materials, Horace Ware began to build an iron furnace. This furnace used a method called "cold blast" to make iron. At first, the Shelby Iron Works Company was small. It could only make about 5 tons of iron each day.
The first furnace was a single stack built from brick and stone. It stood about 30 feet tall. This was the start of a very important industrial site.
Iron for the Civil War
During the American Civil War, the Shelby Iron Works played a big role. The iron they made was used for important things. For example, it was used to make the strong iron plating for Confederate ships. These ships included the CSS Tennessee, CSS Huntsville, and CSS Tuscaloosa.
The iron was also used to make cannons and cannon shells. These were made by a company called Churchill and Sons in Columbiana. The ironworks had its own train line, the Shelby Iron Company Railroad. This railroad connected the ironworks to Columbiana and the Alabama and Tennessee River Railroad. This made it easy to move iron and supplies.
Destruction and Rebuilding
Near the end of the Civil War, on March 31, 1865, the ironworks was attacked. A group of soldiers from General Emory Upton's division, part of Wilson's Raid, destroyed the factory.
Even after this destruction, the company rebuilt and continued to make iron. It kept operating for many years, finally closing down in the early 20th century.
Gallery
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The remaining smoke stack from the machine shop.
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A large, brick-lined cistern.
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Brick foundations of the blast furnaces.
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A large brick retaining wall behind the site of the blast furnaces.
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Concrete skeleton of the building operated by the Shelby Chemical Company to make wood alcohol from charcoal during World War I.
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Chemical plant structure
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Interior of the remnants of the chemical plant.
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Shelby Hotel
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Iron Master's House
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Blue Hole Lake (former brown iron ore mining pit)
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Memorial honoring Confederate soldiers and workers.
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Reverse of memorial listing Confederate units that included soldiers from Shelby County, Alabama
See also
- Birmingham District
- Brierfield Furnace
- Tannehill Ironworks
