Today my wife Laura and I set out to explore Mary Ann Forge some more.
Last week, as you may recall, I visited with Tom Gagliardi and we hiked around the area pretty well. Today I donned my knee waders and tried to check out the river.
We started out by the ruins of the bridge, which once crossed the Mount Misery Brook. It gets deep, really quick. Water got into my boots within 3 feet of the shore. I did make an interesting discovery, though. I found what I think was a cement base for one of the bridge supports, and a long wooden beam that runs the length of the river. Also, hidden in the bushes is likely the last remaining plank from this bridge. Judging by the use of cement and a round-headed nail in the plank, it's my opinion that this bridge outdates the closing of the forge. My guess is that it was built in the early part of the 20th century. I think at one time that road ran up near Hanover, and likely fell into disuse after Camp Dix began swallowing up the area.
So, that leaves the question of what exactly went on here. We know that at one point in time there was a forge here, and later possibly a sawmill. Both of which require the use of water power to operate, which would suggest a dam would have been built.
One of the first things I noticed when I waded into Mount Misery Brook was that it gets deep REAL quick. In some places you step off the shore and immediately it's above your knee. To me, that signifys that the river may have been deepened at one time. It's pretty unlikely, though, that ore was floated here, since water does not flow from Hanover. What's interesting, though, is the network of canals that run through the area.
Going down to the bridge ruins, you walk over a causeway of sorts, where slag litters the ground. As you walk towards the bridge, there is a canal to your left and right. A few steps ahead and there's another one. Finally, you're at the bridge. So perhaps the causeway itself was built up and is the dam. I waded through those two canals. They're nearly straight as an arrow, and relatively shallow (maybe knee height). They do get deep in spots so I was unable to follow them all the way to the end. They seem to cross Mount Misery Road as well.
I don't really see how digging those canals would have benefited the forge, since the water was definately stagnant. The water in Mount Misery Brook was moving pretty fast.
I am still no closer to finding where the forge site was. The key will be to find whether the forge was fed by the river or one of the canals. There is a large depression which may be a HUGE cellar hole - however it has no bricks or other tell-tale signs that it once was a building.
This one is driving me crazy. I need to buy chest waders now...
Last week, as you may recall, I visited with Tom Gagliardi and we hiked around the area pretty well. Today I donned my knee waders and tried to check out the river.
We started out by the ruins of the bridge, which once crossed the Mount Misery Brook. It gets deep, really quick. Water got into my boots within 3 feet of the shore. I did make an interesting discovery, though. I found what I think was a cement base for one of the bridge supports, and a long wooden beam that runs the length of the river. Also, hidden in the bushes is likely the last remaining plank from this bridge. Judging by the use of cement and a round-headed nail in the plank, it's my opinion that this bridge outdates the closing of the forge. My guess is that it was built in the early part of the 20th century. I think at one time that road ran up near Hanover, and likely fell into disuse after Camp Dix began swallowing up the area.
So, that leaves the question of what exactly went on here. We know that at one point in time there was a forge here, and later possibly a sawmill. Both of which require the use of water power to operate, which would suggest a dam would have been built.
One of the first things I noticed when I waded into Mount Misery Brook was that it gets deep REAL quick. In some places you step off the shore and immediately it's above your knee. To me, that signifys that the river may have been deepened at one time. It's pretty unlikely, though, that ore was floated here, since water does not flow from Hanover. What's interesting, though, is the network of canals that run through the area.
Going down to the bridge ruins, you walk over a causeway of sorts, where slag litters the ground. As you walk towards the bridge, there is a canal to your left and right. A few steps ahead and there's another one. Finally, you're at the bridge. So perhaps the causeway itself was built up and is the dam. I waded through those two canals. They're nearly straight as an arrow, and relatively shallow (maybe knee height). They do get deep in spots so I was unable to follow them all the way to the end. They seem to cross Mount Misery Road as well.
I don't really see how digging those canals would have benefited the forge, since the water was definately stagnant. The water in Mount Misery Brook was moving pretty fast.
I am still no closer to finding where the forge site was. The key will be to find whether the forge was fed by the river or one of the canals. There is a large depression which may be a HUGE cellar hole - however it has no bricks or other tell-tale signs that it once was a building.
This one is driving me crazy. I need to buy chest waders now...
