Old Forge
Old Forge, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
On the south bank of the Lackawanna River opposite this spot was located the iron forge built 1789 by Dr. William Smith and James Sutton. This was the region's oldest forge, after which the town was named.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
In 1789, in the years just after the Revolution when the new republic was pushing industry into its river valleys, Dr. William Smith and James Sutton built an iron forge on the south bank of the Lackawanna River. It was the earliest forge in this corner of northeastern Pennsylvania, tapping the region's water power and abundant ore long before anthracite coal made the Lackawanna Valley a national industrial powerhouse. The little settlement that grew up around the works took its name from the forge itself, and the name Old Forge stuck long after the hammer fell silent.
Why it matters
It marks the industrial seed of the Lackawanna Valley, a reminder that America's early republic grew not only through farms and towns but through the small iron forges that turned local ore and water into the tools of a young nation.
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Related people
- · Dr. William Smith
- · James Sutton
Themes & tags
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