Tredegar Ironworks

Tredegar Ironworks (c. 1865)

Tredegar Ironworks (c. 2016)

Anthony Sylvester

3/17/2016

Period 6

Rephotography Project

Step 5

Name: Tredegar Ironworks

Date: 1837

Reason for Construction: Built because of the increasing market in the railroad industry.

Site History: The site was built when a group of investors and industrialists hired a group of ironworkers and an engineer named Rhys Davies from Tredegar, Wales. The site was opened up in 1837; however the same year, the Panic of 1837 would hinder its stability for its first few years. The site would continue to run in its state of poor output until 1841, when the site's owners would hire a civil engineer named Joseph Anderson for management over the site, which would prove to be beneficial to the site. Anderson, over the course of his managerial position, would reorganize the site drastically to maximize outputs. Areas, such as a cotton factory, located on the site were turned into more appropriate facilities, like a spikes factory; production of railroad-related materials were increased, and the site even produced components for ships. At the brink of the Civil War, Tredegar had prospered into the largest ironworks in the Confederacy, which was a primary reason for the shift of the capital of the Confederacy from Montgomery, Alabama to Richmond, Virginia. Soon, it turned from mainly a railroad-oriented factory into a munitions factory, creating much of the ammunition, rifles, and artillery for the Confederate army. It also would provide materials needed for the construction of many of the Confederacy’s ironclad ships. After the war concluded, Anderson had restored his factory due to assets that were kept overseas, which helped as the currency of the confederacy would begin to fail. With the advent of steel processing, the option of converting the factory into that of a steel mill was open until the Panic of 1873 occurred, and the factory would find that they would not be financially able to convert to the more profitable market. The site would continue to run, and even produce materials for the Spanish-American War, and both World Wars, but in 1957, the land was sold to the Ethyl Corporation, which preserved the site and its remaining structures.

Area History: The city of Richmond was a perfect area for the construction of the Tredegar Ironworks, as the city had seen growth in the iron industry throughout Richmond. Yet, at the same time, the slave industry was also hitting its all-time high in Richmond, which would prove to be a reliable source for the site’s labor. Especially as the ironworks are reasonably close to the area of Shockoe Bottom, which, at the time, was one of the largest slave trades in the nation.

Site changes: Since its purchase in 1957, it has been recognized as a National Historic Landmark, and has been converted into a Civil War Visitor’s Center for the Richmond National Battlefield Park, as well as an American Civil War Center.

Area Changes: With the decline of the iron industry and the need for manufacturing in Richmond, as well as the freedom of the African Americans from slavery, the city shifted away from an industrial center and grew more into a cultural center, embracing this history.

Reflection: The Tredegar Ironworks serves as an excellent example of manufacturing and industrialization during Civil War America, being one of the most productive and essential ironmills at the time. Although the confederacy had lost the war, the ironworks was able to maintain its use in Richmond for the next century as an iron manufacturer. Despite its decline in 1957, it remains today as a helpful source of understanding of Civil War, industry and even Richmond history for future generations.

Sources:

"Document Not Found." DynaXML Error: Invalid Document. Accessed March 15, 2016. http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaxtf/view?docId=lva/vi00494.xml;query.

"The Cultural Landscape Foundation." Tredegar Iron Works. Accessed March 16, 2016. https://tclf.org/landscapes/tredegar-iron-works.

"Education from LVA: Tredegar Strike." Education from Library of Virginia: Tredegar Strike. Accessed March 16, 2016. http://edu.lva.virginia.gov/online_classroom/shaping_the_constitution/doc/tredegarstrike.

Authors: Anthony Sylvester