{"nrhp_refnum":"90000392","name":"Harbison-Walker Refractories Company","other_names":["Haws,W.H.,Refractories Company"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"W. Shirley St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Mount Union","county":"Huntingdon County","state":"PA","lat":40.38632253700007,"lon":-77.8893017807392,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1990-03-20","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"An industrial refractory brick complex, designated a district, on the east side of Jacks Mountain at the northwest edge of the Borough of Mount Union, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. It comprises two adjacent works, No. 1 and No. 2, built beginning in 1899 and 1905.","why_significant":"The district is argued to be eligible for its association with an important Huntingdon County industry, the refractory brick trade. The complex retains its original arrangement of storage sheds, production buildings and offices, which the nomination says makes it a good example of a refractory complex. The plant is described as the first works in the United States built exclusively for refractory brick manufacture, and it operated from 1899 through 1985.","narrative":"Along the northwest edge of Mount Union, on the east flank of Jacks Mountain, sits a refractory brick complex built in two adjacent works. The W.H. Haws Company of Johnstown began the plant in 1898-99, and in 1900 Harbison and Walker of Pittsburgh acquired the entire property. It was the first works in the United States built exclusively for refractory brick manufacture. The No. 2 works was begun in 1903 and completed in 1905, and the two plants were designed to run independently. By 1910 the combined operation employed more than 600 men and could produce 150,000 bricks a day. Two railroads served the site: the East Broad Top supplied coal for the kilns and boilers, and the Pennsylvania Railroad handled shipments. The district is regarded as a good example of a refractory complex because it keeps its original storage sheds, production buildings and offices, and its kilns remain connected by underground heating tunnels. Its ganister rock supply and its early origin give it local importance.","period_of_significance":"1899-1939","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Several major production buildings, including the No. 1 and No. 2 works, are described as currently abandoned; the plant is said to have operated through 1985.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:37.599726-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/90000392.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90000392/3226955bee-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90000392/3226955bee-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Jet Lowe","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harbison-Walker_engine_repair_house.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jet Lowe</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harbison-Walker_engine_repair_house.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71993045","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbison-Walker_Refractories_Company","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5654511"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/huntingdon-county/harbison-walker-refractories-company-90000392/"}