Franklin Furnace Historic District
Approximate location: the National Park Service places this pin arbitrarily within the property, not at a surveyed point (stated accuracy ±12 m).
Why it's listed
Franklin Furnace is a small iron plantation in the Franklin Furnace area of St. Thomas Township, Franklin County, built around a stone furnace stack dated 1828 and set in the valley of Wilson Run. The stack, about thirty feet square and thirty feet tall, retains its casting and tuyere arches, and a cast iron plate above the casting arch records the builders, Peter and George Housum. The district also includes a manager's house and office from about 1828, four worker's houses along Cinder Street, and the ruins of a barn. The Housums, who came west from Berks County, bought 1,238 acres in 1827. The furnace changed hands several times, and by 1878 it employed seventy-five men and had thirty company houses nearby. Its products included stoves, but local ore proved unsuitable and transport costs made it unprofitable. Operations largely ended by 1882.
Significance in brief: The district is significant under Criterion A for industry as a representative small iron plantation tied to the Pennsylvania iron industry, and under Criterion C for its vernacular worker's housing and office/manager's house. The furnace stack is regarded as a well preserved stone furnace, and its cast iron date plate is described as unusual and perhaps singular in Pennsylvania. The district retains many elements of the plantation, which the nomination treats as rare in the county.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 91001136, listed September 6, 1991. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Circle Dr. and Cinder St., St. Thomas Township, Edenville |
|---|---|
| County | Franklin County |
| Listed | September 6, 1991 |
| Reference number | 91001136 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1828-1882 |
| Architect / builder | Peter and George Housum (builder); the nomination lists the architect as unknown |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Industry, Engineering, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Furnace ceased full operation by 1882, with residual activity until 1886; several worker's houses have been resided and have additions, and the barn is in ruins. |
| Acreage | 4 |
| Coordinates | 39.95898, -77.82227 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 91001136.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5491518
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.