Carrie Furnaces

We went on a guided tour of the Carrie Furnaces National Historic Landmark. Here, from 1907 to 1978 they took iron ore, limestone and coke, and turned them into pig iron, a key ingredient in steel. It was a 2 hour + tour, and our guide Eric kept us fascinated the whole time. He  helped us imagine the sights, sounds, heat and intense danger experienced by workers.

The steel industry in Pittsburgh seems to me to be somewhat of a paradox. It's both a strong source of local pride, and a grim reminder of times when workers, often immigrants with few other job prospects, were treated as  disposable; cheaper to replace than to protect from the ever present danger of industrial accidents. Despite the fact that the furnaces were not constructed with any money spent on aesthetics, the ruins have a haunting beauty. Their famous deer head sculpture was constructed there by a group of artists who sneaked in through a hole in the fence and built from materials found on site. A deer seems quite appropriate, since whenever people move out, nature inevitably moves in. Since then, graffiti artists have been invited there to create murals. Many of them are pretty cool. We thoroughly enjoyed our glimpse into Pittsburgh's storied past.

Jasper trying on a heat protective suit worn inside the furnaces.