Ozark Iron Works furnace stacks

[PANIC! on the Titanic]

So the past couple days my gf and I have been walking down the train tracks from Rolla into oblivion. A couple miles outside of Newberg, we came across some weird ass structures resembling Mayan temples or something. Having no idea what they were, we explored them, snagged some pics, climbed all over them and moved on.

Flash forward to just now. In coincident conversation with drummerdude, he mentioned the Ozark Iron Works and sent me some link that I glanced over, and noticed that the description on this historic places registry application directly matched that of the temples. We had stumbled into the furnaces of the iron works, which operated in the mid 1870's. These were by far the bitchinest furnace stack I'd ever seen.

Check it:


Furnaces as we approach from the tracks


From the front:


Looking in through the main archway on the east side


Standing inside the main archway, showing keystone and a precariously placed block of sandstone.


Looking up through the smoke stack


View of top of structure



Also about 200 feet east of the furnaces were the ruins of a brick building, which served as the iron works store, eventually burning in 1968.


Around back


Pretty cool stuff. Many thanks to drummerdude for the registry link, found here

[crazydrummerdude]

Holy shit! I had no idea they were so big! (That's what she said, maybe.)

I gotta go there. I also gotta go to the Maramec Spring Park (the site of the original Maramec Iron Works). Ozark Iron Works was kinda the last attempt at the James family (of St. James (yes, they named it after themselves)) prosperity, but they spread their resources too thin and folded shortly thereafter.

I am a little obsessed with brewery cellars and iron foundries. I picked up a book (Frontier Iron: The Maramec Iron Works 1826- 1876 by James D. Norris) from the Rolla used book store all about these foundries. Excellent score on my part.

They are also mentioned in this famous (to me) rollanet article.. http://www.rollanet.org/~conorw/cwome/article16.htm

Where you and your woman were standing was ~2700 degrees Fahrenheit ~140 years ago.

[ropingk]

and powered but hand cut wood no chain saws no trucks just back breaking hard work

[slow_walker]

That is really cool. Also really cool that you have a gf who is willing to do these types of things and not be too girlie.

[redox]

oh cool!

[redox]

oh cool!

[cmburn01]

Wow that is a hell of a find!!

[CaveGirl]

That is really cool. Also really cool that you have a gf who is willing to do these types of things and not be too girlie.

Hey now, not all females are all girlie & shit. Some of like to explore & get dirty, sometimes more so than our guy friends . I'm much more "manly" than my best (male) friend who's living with us now .

You guys should check out the old Hamilton Iron Works sometime if you're in the Sullivan area. I have pics somewhere but hell if I can find them. They're probably on my old computer or something.

[gimpface]

Amazing find, very cool!

[graffitifetish]

That is really cool. Also really cool that you have a gf who is willing to do these types of things and not be too girlie.

Hey now, not all females are all girlie & shit. Some of like to explore & get dirty, sometimes more so than our guy friends .

I'm pretty sure that pokey, as a fellow female explorer, is aware of that fact. I think she's just saying it's nice he's with a girl who is cool and shares his interests or is at least willing to check them out, since plenty of people who like to explore can sometimes find themselves dating someone who doesn't.

[slow_walker]

That is really cool. Also really cool that you have a gf who is willing to do these types of things and not be too girlie.

Hey now, not all females are all girlie & shit. Some of like to explore & get dirty, sometimes more so than our guy friends .

I'm pretty sure that pokey, as a fellow female explorer, is aware of that fact. I think she's just saying it's nice he's with a girl who is cool and shares his interests or is at least willing to check them out, since plenty of people who like to explore can sometimes find themselves dating someone who doesn't.

Bullseye!

[CaveGirl]

Hey now, not all females are all girlie & shit. Some of like to explore & get dirty, sometimes more so than our guy friends .

I'm pretty sure that pokey, as a fellow female explorer, is aware of that fact. I think she's just saying it's nice he's with a girl who is cool and shares his interests or is at least willing to check them out, since plenty of people who like to explore can sometimes find themselves dating someone who doesn't.

Bullseye!

Hmm...I can't really think of a way to explain what I actually meant by that without writing a long explanation & looking like an even bigger jackass.

I know pokey is female and I'm sure that is what she's saying. She's right.

[slow_walker]

I'm pretty sure that pokey, as a fellow female explorer, is aware of that fact. I think she's just saying it's nice he's with a girl who is cool and shares his interests or is at least willing to check them out, since plenty of people who like to explore can sometimes find themselves dating someone who doesn't.

Bullseye!

Hmm...I can't really think of a way to explain what I actually meant by that without writing a long explanation & looking like an even bigger jackass.

I know pokey is female and I'm sure that is what she's saying. She's right.

I wasn't worried about. I didn't interpret it wrong because I didn't interpret it at all.