Saugus Ironworks was the first iron foundry (and commercial bloomery) in this country. Here's some of what they have to say:
"Using charcoal as its fuel, the Saugus blast furnace roared to life in 1646 and smelted locally-mined bog ore and gabbro into cast iron "pig" bars. Gray iron was also poured into molds to make pots, kettles, skillets, firebacks and salt-pans."
We're not coordinating, offering transport, or charging for this -- we're just encouraging you to take this day to make a trip to Saugus -- it's what we'll be doing.
Directions to Saugus Ironworks
They're open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, but we think the Iron Pour part of the day will mostly be taking place between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm. Check with them to be sure!
Instructor: Saugus Ironworks Staff
Free! per student
There is room for as many as come
Dress as for the forge, closed-toe shoes (boots are better!), no synthetic fabrics, etc.
Please wear proper clothing for visiting or working in the forge:
- closed top shoes
(Preferably leather, preferably high-topped. Sneakers are sufficient...
but sandals, crocs, pumps, mules... are not. If you can see the skin of your foot, or the foot of your socks, it's not good enough.)
- natural fiber clothing
(Synthetics are a risk because: IF a HOT thing touches them it's likely that the material will melt and stick to your flesh, making the burn even worse than it would be through a natural fiber.)
- long pants that cover the tops of the shoes.
(To keep hot coals and bits of steel from getting down into your shoes. Which I hear is a bunch of No Fun.)
Click here for more safety information.
This class is either: If you're interested in taking Saugus Ironworks Founders Day Iron Pour and it's not on the calendar, please tell us using our Notification-List Page.
Dates and Times:
- not upcoming on our schedule,
- or we've fallen behind in our clerical duties and not entered it in the database.
If you found it on our calendar page, we are planning to offer it on that date.