Historical Marker

Eddyville Furnace

Also called Jim and I. A brick blast furnace for smelting iron, burning charcoal fuel, built 1832 by John and Samuel Stacker and Thomas Tennessee Watson. Later owned by members of Cobb family, then by William Kelly, inventor of the so-called Bessemer process for making steel. Much of its iron was forged at Kuttawa. Last blast about 1850. See other side.

Reverse

Iron Made in Kentucky - A major producer since 1791, Ky. ranked 3rd in US in 1830s, 11th in 1965. Charcoal timber, native ore, limestone supplied material for numerous furnaces making pig iron, utensils, munitions in the Hanging Rock, Red River, Between Rivers, Rolling Fork, Green River Regions. Old charcoal furnace era ended by depletion of ore and timber and by the growth of railroads.