Pennsylvania Photos and Documents

Isaac Meason, known for his grand Georgian mansion in Fayette County, deserves greater recognition for his contributions to the advancement of iron manufacturing that lead to the growth of the coal, coke and steel industries in Western Pennsylvania. Isaac Meason built Union Furnace, the first successful iron furnace west of the Alleghenies, in 1791. Meason also operated a foundry and grist mill in connection with the furnace. The associated forge provided iron sugar and salt kettles, Dutch ovens and other wares that were shipped by local keelboats for Louisiana. These wares were purchased by both western Pennsylvania businesses and families, and by settlers traveling west down the Ohio River. The furnace and forge passed through several hands until the company failed in 1922. Meason also sponsored the first iron suspension bridge in Pennsylvania, and financed and collaborated with Thomas Lewis on the first rolling mill producing bar iron in 1817. At his death, Isaac Meason owned interests in the Mount Vernon Forge, Maria Forge, Union Forge, Union Furnace, Grist Mill, and the Middletown Iron Works. The Meason ledgers will provide a broad history of the iron industry in Western Pennsylvania. These ledgers, containing over 2,800 pages of entries, provide important documentation of the raw materials, workforce and supplies necessary to operate an iron forge and furnace in the early 19th century. It holds seven Isaac Meason Union Furnace Ledgers covering the years 1801-1822, with the years 1803-1808, and 1818-1820 missing. In addition, there is a Union Forge Time and Team Ledger for 1809-1811, an original index book, and ledgers for the Union Grist Mill and the Mount Vernon, Centre, Mount Braddock, Dunbar, Warren, and Pallofax Furnace operations. These records are unique, unpublished primary documents of the iron furnace industry. Documenting not only the historical significance of the rise of the coal, coke and steel industries in Western Pennsylvania, it also provides records of use to genealogists and family historians whose ancestors worked or traded with the furnace. The records list payments to local farmers, laborers and businesses for supplies and raw materials, and income from boarding individuals. Specifically, these ledgers contain information about local workers who transported the wares from the Dunbar Creek area and payments to individuals for coal supplies and to local potters for their wares. This collection is dedicated to the memory of JOAN PEAKE, a professional genealogist and long-time volunteer, who dedicated her time and expertise to the Pennsylvania Room at the Uniontown Public Library and to the wider research community for nearly 20 years. Her dedication to this project, along with Linda Jennings, helped make it possible.