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Teach PA History
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Digging, Smelting and Forging: But Why in Pennsylvania?
Extensions

1) Have students brainstorm a list of products made from iron that they use in their lives. After they have a list, have the students each write one paragraph about what their lives might be like if there was no iron or iron products. 2) Have the students use a computer game to build their own iron furnace. The students have seen how the iron furnace works and now they can recall their knowledge to create their own virtual furnace. This activity takes about five minutes and provides a good review of the iron smelting and forging process. The activity can be found at How Stuff Works: The Blast Furnance Animation. Click on the link that says "build it". 3) Have students research how iron can be turned into steel, a stronger and more durable material than iron. Have the students research the role of steel in Pennsylvania and compare it to iron in Pennsylvania. 4) Each student could select one iron furnace in Pennsylvania. He/she could do a project researching that specific furnace to find out where it was located, what products were made there, and if it is still standing today. The students could include pictures, maps, and a written explanation of their selected iron furnace. 5) Compare natural resource maps from 1860 to natural resource maps of today. Have Pennsylvanians" conserved their natural resources? Explore environmental concepts of conservation and renewal.

Field Trips

Cornwall Iron Furnace Boyd Street and Rexmont Rd Cornwall, PA 17015 717-272-9711
Cornwall Furnace is one of the many furnaces that existed during the booming iron industry in Pennsylvania. The Cornwall Furnace allows guest to take a tour of the furnace to see first-hand how the iron ore was smelted into iron. Students get to see the different aspects of the furnace and all of the various steps involved in making iron.

Hopewell Iron Furnace 2 Mark Bird Lane Elverson, PA 19520 610-582-8773
The Hopewell Iron Furnace is an iron plantation that once produced products such as the cannon, the Hopewell stove, and various wrought-iron pots. The ironmaster's house as well as several of the buildings from the iron plantation can be toured to give students an idea of what each building was used for.

3) Scranton Furnace 159 Cedar Ave Scranton, PA 18504 570-963-3208
Scranton Furnace was one of the largest furnaces during the 19th century. This furnace represents the transition from the smaller furnaces to the larger manufacturing and industrial furnaces. There were five separate furnaces at the Scranton Furnace site, four of which are still standing. This would give the students an opportunity to see how a smaller furnace would lead to the development of the larger manufacturing sites as the demand increased.

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