WELCOME to Beckley Furnace!

Connecticut’s Industrial Monument

People visit our historic blast furnace for many reasons.  Some come for education:  to learn more about the historic iron industry of the Upper Housatonic Valley.  Some come to just to enjoy the setting.  Some come out of curiosity:  “What IS that thing?” is usually the first thing they ask.

Whether you’re visiting this historic blast furnace (and Connecticut State Park) for educational, for research,  or research purposes, or if you are curious about Beckley Furnace and the historic iron industry, or if you’d just like to enjoy our park-like setting, or if you are just plain curious, you are welcome.  We hope we can offer you some material that you’ll find interesting.

Welcome to Beckley Furnace!

To see our recent posts look at the sidebar to the right. Also make sure to check out the Connections to Learning page if you’re a student or a teacher. The Learning Resources pages have lots of sources to go to for more information about Beckley Furnace and about the historic iron industry of the Upper Housatonic Valley.  Some are educational, and are directed toward using Beckley Furnace to develop thinking and analytical skills that serve in many ways.  For the history of Beckley Furnace itself, please check the About page.

Want to visit us?  In person, we mean!!  The grounds are open year round during daylight hours, and we have knowledgeable guides on site Saturdays from 10 AM – 2 PM in the summer months.

Theodore Perotti, a promising local filmmaker, has just provided us with a great new video he made introducing people to Beckley Furnace.  Take a look! See some of our most knowledgeable people giving you a glimpse into how Beckley Furnace worked.  (Special thanks to Ted, of course!  And thanks as well to Dick Paddock and Ed Kirby, whom you’ll see in the video.)

As useful as Ted’s new video is, we can’t forget the two Girl Scouts working on their Silver Award several years ago who were responsible for our basic website design, and they created a welcome video way back then.    (Read about how  this website came into being on our About page.

Welcome to Beckley Furnace  on Vimeo.

Beckley Furnace, Connecticut’s only designated Industrial Monument, is the centerpiece of the Upper Housatonic Valley’s Iron Heritage Trail.