Deseret Iron Works (2) Markers

The first iron west of the Mississippi was poured here, and it was barely a handful. Brigham Young had called English and Welsh ironworkers to Cedar City so the Territory need not freight its iron from the East, and on September 30, 1852, after a year of labor, they tapped the furnace and ran out a little iron. Horsemen carried samples north to Salt Lake. But the works never succeeded — the coke wouldn't coke, Coal Creek flooded the furnaces, and a year's effort might yield only nails enough to shoe a horse. The company gave up in 1858.

What the plaque says

This monument marks the spot where on Sept. 30, 1852 the first iron was manufactured west of the Mississippi River by the Mormon Iron Missionaries sent by Brigham Young. This 5½ ton ore body was obtained from the iron deposits used by iron workers located about seven miles west of Cedar City in the Three Peaks area; it is about 16% Fe. The smaller specimens are some that were actually hauled by horse-drawn vehicles to this site and were found during excavation. The blast furnace, foundry, pattern shop, coke and charcoal ovens, water wheel and office of the early Pioneer Iron Works were located north, south, and east of this monument. The technology of using coke was brought by these early iron workers directly from England where the use of charcoal had been outlawed and which was a relatively new idea, especially in American iron manufacturing. In spike of floods which inundated the iron works, the undependable water source and other natural and man made difficulties, considerable iron was produced here until 1858 making the Iron Industry one of the leading factors in the economy of the Utah Territory.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Brian Head — 12 mi
  Utah's highest town — a ski-and-bike base camp at the top of Parowan Canyon
• Cedar Breaks National Monument — 12 mi
  A 2,000-foot-deep amphitheater of vivid orange and red rock
• Parowan Gap Petroglyphs — 13 mi
  An ancient rock art gallery hidden in a desert canyon
• Kolob Canyons — 18 mi
  The quiet, uncrowded back door to Zion National Park

More markers nearby

• The Old Iron Foundry — steps away
• Iron Pioneers Flag Pole — 0.2 mi
• Pioneer Cabin — 0.3 mi
• Ward Hall — 0.4 mi