Tredegar Iron Works

(Tredegar Iron Works, 1865)

(Tredegar Iron Works, 2017)

Site Name: Tredegar Iron Works  

Date of Opening: 1837

Reason for Construction: A very successful iron foundry, the Tredegar Ironworks manufactured numerous products and was “Richmond’s foremost business concern for more than a century (NPS).”

Site History:

Tredegar Iron Works was established in Richmond in 1837. The Iron Works was significant in the community and economy, manufacturing a myriad of products, including cannons, locomotives, and sugar mills. Major contracts of the Iron Works were those to build bridges and railroads. The Iron Works had an important role in Virginian military history. During the Civil War, it was a hub of manufacturing warships, submarines, and more. Ammunition was also manufactured in the Iron Works during the Spanish American War, World War I, and World War II.

The Tredegar Iron Works remained financially successful despite the economic hardship of reconstruction and the 1840s iron industry depression. With industrialization, the financial success slowed with the rising preference of steel to iron. In 1952, a fire wrecked many buildings within the Iron Works. Production ended with this fire. Three buildings have since been restored. Sixteen of the original buildings within the Iron Works no longer exist today.

Today, the Tredegar Ironworks is a national historical site and a nonprofit museum. It explains the Civil War to visitors from African American, Northern, and Southern perspectives.

Area History: Located along the James River and near locations with large deposits of iron ore, Richmond became a major iron industry during the 1830s/40s, during which railroads became increasingly common. Just a couple of decades after the Tredegar Iron Works’ 1837 establishment, founder Joseph R. Anderson successfully turned the foundry from a failing business venture to a foundry that rivaled the best in the nation. Since 1854, the nature of the Iron Works’ business changed but remained profitable. During the Civil War, the foundry manufactured ships, cannons, and ammunition. The Iron Works continued to be in use for nearly another century, ending production after a large fire in 1952.

What about the site has changed?

While it was difficult to recreate the exact angle of 1865 picture, it is clear that there fewer buildings within the Iron Works in 2017. This is because of the 1952 fire that destroyed much of the site. Restoration occurred in the 1970s.

What about the surrounding area has changed?

The Tredegar Iron Works is located near the intersection of 5th St. and Tredegar St., directly across Brown’s Island. When the Iron Works was still active, the immediate surrounding area was sparse. The many buildings of the Iron Works took up a large amount of space on the James.

Today, more trees, a paved road, and a more developed bridge to Brown’s Island surround the Iron Works, which is located next to the Civil War Museum. The space around the Iron Works is often used as a recreational area, as the site of the Folk Festival, and has important historical significance.

Reflection:

While I am often near the Tredegar Iron Works when in Richmond, I underestimated its importance in local history. However, I have never visited the inside of the building or the Civil War Museum. Looking through the exhibits would teach me more about local history. The emphasis on the three different perspectives of the Civil War (African American, Union, Confederate) seems very interesting as well.

Author: Yashodhara Varma

Sources:

"A Guide to the Tredegar Iron Works Records." In Library of Virginia. Richmond,

VA: Library of Virginia, n.d. Accessed February 10, 2017.

Bumgardner, Sarah, and S. Nelson. Tredegar Iron Works: A Synecdoche for

Industrialized Antebellum Richmond. November 9, 1995. Accessed February 10,

2017. http://srnels.people.wm.edu/antrichf95/bumgard.html.

"Tredegar Iron Works." National Parks Service. Accessed February 10, 2017.

https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/richmond/WhiteHouse_of_theConfederacy.html.