It is known that the cannonballs fired during the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 by Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II (Fatih Sultan Mehmet, Mehmed the Conqueror) were manufactured here. The facility is also called today by the local people as Fatih Foundry (the "Conqueror's Foundry"). Demirköy means literally "Ironville". Iron casting continued in the foundry from the mid-15th century until the late 19th century. It appears that the foundry underwent a thoroughgoing renovation during the Mahmud II (1808–1839) period. The foundry was then subordinated to the administration of Imperial Cannon Factory (Tophane-i Amire) in Istanbul, which was established in 1839. According to the Ottoman documents, its historic name was "Samakocuk Dökümhane-i Amiresi" (literally: Samakocuk İmperial Foundry).