Fayette was once one of the Upper Peninsula's most productive iron-smelting operations. Fayette grew up around two blast furnaces, a large dock, and several charcoal kilns, following the post-Civil War need for iron. Nearly 500 residents—many immigrating from Canada, the British Isles, and northern Europe—lived in and near the town that existed to make pig iron. During 24 years of operation Fayette's blast furnaces produced a total of 229,288 tons of iron, using local hardwood forests for fuel and quarrying limestone from the bluffs to purify the iron ore. When the charcoal iron market began to decline, the Jackson Iron Company closed its Fayette smelting operations in 1891.
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Fayette was once one of the Upper Peninsula's most productive iron-smelting operations. Fayette grew up around two blast furnaces, a large dock, and several charcoal kilns, following the post-Civil War need for iron. Nearly 500 residents—many immigrating from Canada, the British Isles, and northern Europe—lived in and near the town that existed to make pig iron. During 24 years of operation Fayette's blast furnaces produced a total of 229,288 tons of iron, using local hardwood forests for fuel and quarrying limestone from the bluffs to purify the iron ore. When the charcoal iron market began to decline, the Jackson Iron Company closed its Fayette smelting operations in 1891.
Michigan Yooper
If You Don’t Stand for Something, You’ll Fall for AnythingTags: None
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Thanks Caleb, It's fun when I can connect a knapped point with something special.
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Where does the slag glass come from in the process of smelting iron ore?
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Hey Caleb, The limestone was heated hot enough to form the slag. I have one piece that is half rock and half slag. The limestone on the Garden Peninsula near Fayette is very pure limestone.
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That is pretty cool Ron thanks for the history and as usual you made a fine point there.TN formerly CT Visit our store http://stores.arrowheads.com/store.p...m-Trading-Post
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Ron Kelly is Jedi Master naps slag from a 150 year old blast furnace, congratulations, came out nice2ET703 South Central Texas
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Thanks LongStride, I am always looking for something different to knap. Now I have # 95 on my knapped lithics list. I guess I can call this a lithic: It was limestone.Last edited by Ron Kelley; 04-25-2022, 11:30 PM.
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I bet I would get some looks if I told people I knapped Limestone. :-)
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Great story and congrats on being able to knap the slag...that's impressive! Knew a guy who used to bring me black slag, he claimed it was obsidian from a Hopewell workshop...Near the PA/Ohio state line
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