West Point Foundry

Trudie A. Grace, Mark Forlow

• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9781439644539
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

Established in 1817 as a cannon foundry, the West Point Foundry at Cold Spring in the Hudson Highlands was one of the first major industrial sites in the United States. The foundry and its many iron products, most significantly artillery and other ordnance, played a central role in the nations industrial development. At its peak during the Civil War, the foundry manufactured cannons of several types, including Dahlgrens, Rodmans, andmost prolificallyParrott rifles, which were widely employed and crucial to the Union victory. Among other products were the first American steam locomotives, marine engines and boilers for early steamships and warships, sugar mills, aqueduct pipes, dynamite and disappearing guns, architectural columns, and industrial machinery. Rare photographs and other images, mostly from the 19th century, trace the foundrys story from its early years through the period of Civil War production to its eventual status as a site of archaeological excavation.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• 1. Founding, Location, and Early Products of the West Point Foundry (1817 to early 1860s)
• 2. The Mechanics of Production (1860s)
• 3. WPF Ordnance in Action during the Civil War (1861 to 1865)
• 4. Into the Community (1830s to 1890s)
• 5. Post–Civil War Period with New Ownerships and New Products (1866 to 1911)
• 6. Deterioration, Archaeology, and Preservation (1912 to 2013)
• Bibliography