Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-01-04
paign, and the congregations were generally
large
THE FIRST DISCOVERY

THE FIRST DISCOVERY
OF Iron Ore in the Territory West of the
Allegheny Mountains-John Hayden.
Determination Crowned at Last With
Success, if Not With Pecuniary Profit
The Location of the Great Find.
Georges township, Favette county, has
the honor of being the first to furnish ore
for the manufacture of iron west of the
Alleghenies The credit of that discovery
is due to John HAYDEN, one of its citizens.
Hayden was Jerseyman, and in those
early DAYS often called on Job Custead, q
fellow Jerseyman, to talk over the COM
Portable homes they had left to come to
these wilds. A theme uppermost in Hay
den's mind, and one of which he never
tired of talking (although listeners did,
was the old folks saying of Western Penn
sylvania-"A very fine country, but it can
never prosper, because there is neither salt
nor iron there"
He would say over and over again, "Iron
ore is here, 1 know, and am always look
ing for it; and, mark my words, we will find
it VET 1t was about the year 1889 that
HAYDEN began to dig what he supposed to
be limestone from the creek bed of a branch
to Georges creek, in Georges township. In
the autumn of 1890 he built limekiln of
his supposed limestone, and, as he thought,
burned it. Having occasion to need lime at
the time he tried to slack some of the stones
from the kiln bv plunging them into water.
Contrary to all expectation, the water did
not slack them He tried and tried again,
but found after each trial that the blush
stones were as heavy and hard as ever. The
subject always near him returned to his
mind.
The Great Discovery Made.
From his pocket he quickly took the
magnet he always carried, and trembling
in every limb stopped and touched it to
some broken particles of the stone which
Law at his feet. As if endowed with life
they clung tightly to the magnet in his
shaking hand. But his faith almost failed
him, for this was so different from any kind
of ore he had ever vet seen, and fearing
that he might be making great mistake he
determined to quietly have it tested at
some blacksmith shop. From shop to shop
he rode CARRYING few of the precious
stones with him, but the i'll natured smiths
would not permit any experimenting over
their fires.
''That is foolishness Everybody knows
there is no ore here was what thew said,
but Havden was not discouraged, and went
on to another shop. In his travels he at
last reached a shop where Jersey friend
presided over the bright fire. Everything
was at his disposal for the trial. Long did
the two men heat and hammer, but at last
the reward came in the shape of strong
bar of iron-as thick as a harrow tooth.
HAYDEN mounted his horse, taking with
him the precious piece of iron and a lump
of the blue stone, and rode to New Jersey
to get help to build forge. But here sue
cess was not his. for the smiths acted the
same as they had at home. He wanted to
get help to build and operate furnace on
his farm. None would listen and he re-
turned to Philadelphia disheartened.
Start of the First Furnace.
While he was away on his search man
named Meason started q furnace, about
1790-91. The year after, the Fairfield fur
mace was built bv HAYDEN and John Mich
olson, State Comptroller. When Hayden
had arrived in Philadelphia he made his
discovery known in that city. 1t was his
fortune. or misfortune as some say, to get
as partner in his enterprise the State Comp
troller John Nicholson. In the year 1894
HAYDEN, 7. Wynn and William Squire built
Fairchance. Afterward Nicholson failed,
and his partner, Hayden, soon went down.
Then John Oliphant, Sr., and his son, F. H.
took Hayden's furnaces. In the |
minutes of the old Mount Moriah Baptist |
Church, in Fairchance, is made a mention |
Of forge called the old Pine Grove Forge, |
built by Thomas Lewis on the Pine Grove |
r1e 81
ard Reed had loaned Thomas Lewis e100 |
of Pennsylvania money, to receive in |
payment four tons of iron from his forge |
Mr.. Bail Brownfeld, whose memory |
went back to 1900, and who was |
raised at Smithfield. said he had always un-
derstood from old people that this was the |
first forge west of the Allegheny Mount |
aims.
Jacob Soaring, one of the first settlers, |
said that he had dug ore for Lewis for sew
eral years before his failure, which came in
l799 AT this forge the raw iron was |
worked through the use of charcoal into bar
ron of great toughness. The ore was
specially suited to this process and made |
rood iron; it was called 'sred short, and
he vein was two and one-half feet.
There Were Mortgages Then, Too.
In the county records is mention of this
anne forge, saying that Thomas Lewis made
mortgage to Philip jenkins, of Georges
ownship, which embraced call that GER
ain tract of land located in Georges
ownship, adjoining lands of Joseph Still
veil, John Shacklet, the heirs of
Augustus Smith, and W. Davis, with
lis forge, houses and all man
Ter of buildings" This tract of land
vas held by warrant and improvement
t can be placed as a certainty, however,
hat John Hayden, in the year 1890, first
discovered iron ore west of the Alleghenies
md made the first iron. A town now de-
aged, but then noted for business, was
ounded by him and in maps and history
till bears his name, as does also an ancient
emetery. The latter is not far from his
some two miles north of Fair
hance, and mile or less west of Fairfield