Mine Hill Preserve 4-17-2014
Hiking through Mine Hill Preserve feels like stepping directly into industrial history preserved quietly in the middle of the Connecticut woods. Coming around the trail curve to see this massive stone blast furnace standing quietly among the trees makes you appreciate the engineering scale of 19th-century New England iron making operations.
Built with heavy cut granite blocks and a distinctive brick archway, the historic blast furnace commands the entire frame under a clear blue sky. Bright afternoon sunlight cuts through the bare branches overhead, casting gentle lens flares across the weathered masonry and adjacent stone retaining walls that line the hillside.
