Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site

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Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site
Map of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania showing the location of French Creek State Park
Location:	Pennsylvania, USA
Nearest city:	Reading, Pennsylvania
Coordinates:	40°11′55″N, 75°46′32″W
Area:	848 acres (3.43 km²)
Established:	August 3, 1938
Total Visitation:	49,980 (in 2005)
Governing body:	National Park Service

A farmhouse at Hopewell Furnance National Historic Site

Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site near Elverson, Pennsylvania, is an example of an American 19th century rural "iron plantation". The buildings include a blast furnace and the ironmaster's house, with auxiliary structures. Hopewell Furnace was founded in 1771 by ironmaster Mark Bird, who was the largest slave owner in Berks County, Pennsylvania in 1780, and for whom Birdsboro was named. A canalized headrace turned the water wheel supplying air to fire the blast furnace. The furnace continued in operation until 1883.

As slavery was phased out in Pennsylvania, African Americans stayed on as paid employees of the Furnace. Beginning in the 1830s, the remote wooded area around Hopewell Furnace figured prominently in the Underground Railroad.

In an area that is primarily significant for its cultural resources, Hopewell Furnace consists of 14 restored structures in the core historic area, 52 features on the List of Classified Structures, and a total of 848 mostly wooded acres. Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site is surrounded by French Creek State Park which preserves the lands the furnace utilized for its natural resources.

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	Protected Areas of Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
State Parks	Allegheny Islands \| Archbald Pothole \| Bald Eagle \| Beltzville \| Bendigo \| Benjamin Rush \| Big Pocono \| Big Spring \| Black Moshannon \| Blue Knob \| Boyd Big Tree \| Buchanan's Birthplace \| Bucktail \| Caledonia \| Canoe Creek \| Chapman \| Cherry Springs \| Clear Creek \| Codorus \| Colonel Denning \| Colton Point \| Cook Forest \| Cowans Gap \| Delaware Canal \| Denton Hill \| Elk \| Erie Bluffs \| Evansburg \| Fort Washington \| Fowlers Hollow \| Frances Slocum \| French Creek \| Gifford Pinchot \| Gouldsboro \| Greenwood Furnace \| Hickory Run \| Hillman \| Hills Creek \| Hyner Run \| Hyner View \| Jacobsburg \| Jennings \| Joseph E. Ibberson \| Kettle Creek \| Keystone \| Kings Gap \| Kinzua Bridge \| Kooser \| Lackawanna \| Laurel Hill \| Laurel Mountain \| Laurel Ridge \| Laurel Summit \| Lehigh Gorge \| Leonard Harrison \| Linn Run \| Little Buffalo \| Little Pine \| Locust Lake \| Lyman Run \| Marsh Creek \| Maurice K. Goddard \| McCalls Dam \| McConnells Mill \| Memorial Lake \| Milton \| Mont Alto \| Moraine \| Mt. Pisgah \| Nescopeck \| Neshaminy \| Nockamixon \| Norristown Farm \| Nolde Forest \| Ohiopyle \| Oil Creek \| Ole Bull \| Parker Dam \| Patterson \| Penn-Roosevelt \| Pine Grove Furnace \| Poe Paddy \| Poe Valley \| Point \| Presque Isle \| Prince Gallitzin \| Promised Land \| Prompton \| Prouty Place \| Pymatuning \| R. B. Winter \| Raccoon Creek \| Ralph Stover \| Ravensburg \| Reeds Gap \| Ricketts Glen \| Ridley Creek \| Ryerson Station \| S. B. Elliott \| Salt Springs \| Samuel S. Lewis \| Sand Bridge \| Shawnee \| Shikellamy \| Sinnemahoning \| Sizerville \| Susquehanna \| Susquehannock \| Swatara \| Tobyhanna \| Trough Creek \| Tuscarora \| Tyler \| Upper Pine Bottom \| Varden \| Warriors Path \| Whipple Dam \| White Clay Creek \| Worlds End \| Yellow Creek
State Forests	Bald Eagle \| Buchanan \| Cornplanter \| Delaware \| Elk \| Forbes \| Gallitzin \| Kittanning \| Lackawanna \| Loyalsock \| Michaux \| Moshannon \| Rothrock \| Sproul \| Susquehannock \| Tiadaghton \| Tioga \| Tuscarora \| Valley Forge \| Weiser \| Wyoming
Scenic Rivers	Bear Run \| French Creek \| Lehigh River \| Le Tort Spring Run \| Lick Run \| Lower Brandywine \| Octoraro Creek \| Pine Creek \| Schuylkill River \| Stony Creek \| Tucquan Creek \| Tulpehocken Creek \| Yellow Breeches Creek
National Parks and Forests	Allegheny Portage Railroad \| Delaware Water Gap \| Edgar Allan Poe \| Eisenhower \| Flight 93 \| Fort Necessity \| Friendship Hill \| Gettysburg \| Hopewell Furnace \| Independence \| Johnstown Flood \| Middle Delaware \| Steamtown \| Thaddeus Kosciuszko \| Upper Delaware \| Valley Forge \| Allegheny

	U.S. National Register of Historic Places - (List of entries)
	National Park Service ^. National Historic Landmarks ^. National Battlefields ^. National Historic Sites ^. National Historic Parks ^. National Memorials ^. National Monuments