Historic Furnishings Report: Cast House, Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, Pennsylvania
Demer J. 2003. Historic Furnishings Report: Cast House, Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, Pennsylvania. Historic Furnishing Reports. National Park Service - Harpers Ferry Center, Department of Historic Furnishings. Harpers Ferry, WV
In 1935, the United States bought about 6,000 acres of land near Elverson, Pennsylvania, from A. Louise Brooke (a descendant of the owners of Hopewell Furnace) and others. The federal government acquired the land "for use as a public park and recreational area, for the restoration of structures of historic interest ... and to provide public facilities for the project.'' The government developed a Civilian Conservation Corps encampment of 400 men to develop a park and restore the remains of the historic structures. On August 3, 1938, an Executive Order of the Acting Secretary of the Interior established the site's surviving structures as Hopewell Village National Historic Site to help represent "the colonial history of the United States."2 The initial phase of restoration and stabilization of structures continued from 193 5 to the late 1960s. The site currently represents a 19th-century iron plantation as surviving structures primarily date from the 19th century. Congress renamed the site Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site on September 19, 1985 . The Cast House is included on the National Register of Historic Places in the Register's inclusive listing for Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Hopewell Furnace's National registration number is 66000645.3 The rehabilitation program of the National Park Service authorizes the historic furnishings report for the Cast House; the historic furnishings report supplements a thorough report on the Cast House done in 1967 by Park Historian Earl Heydinger. Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site states a need for a report in its long range interpretive plan.4
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Demer, John
- Date of Issue
- 2003
- Publisher
- National Park Service - Harpers Ferry Center, Department of Historic Furnishings
- Units
- HIST , HOFU
- Keywords
- Administrative Information, Analysis of Historic Occupancy, Duties at Hopewell Furnace, ehistory, Furnishings Plan, historical information, History, Recommended furnishings