Hopewell Furnace invites the public to join in commemorating National Public Lands Day on Saturday, September 24th. Held annually on the fourth Saturday in September, National Public Lands Day celebrates the connection between people and green space in their community, inspires environmental stewardship, and encourages the use of open space for education, recreation, and health benefits.
Offerings this year at Hopewell Furnace include service projects throughout the park as well as programming related to the Civilian Conservation Corps’ role in restoring the park.
This year’s service projects involve addressing needs related to the natural resources in the park, like removing invasive plants, and monitoring the various trails that pass through the site. Additional information on the projects, and how you can sign up to participate, can be found by searching “Hopewell Furnace” at Volunteer.gov.
Photo courtesy of Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site.
Also, throughout the day, reenactors in Civilian Conservation Corps(CCC) attire will offer programs and demonstrations highlighting the role the CCC played in restoring Hopewell Furnace as well as the organization’s impact on other public lands throughout the county during the Great Depression.
Activities will include mock CCC enlistment procedures, woodcutting and branding demonstrations, and Park Ranger lead programming. National Public Lands Day is organized annually and led by the National Environmental Education Foundation. in partnership with the National Park Service and other federal agencies.
Hopewell Furnace was established as a National Historic Site on August 3, 1938 and preserves the late 18th and early 19th century setting of an iron-making community, including the charcoal-fueled furnace, and its natural and cultural resources. This community illustrates the essential role of industrialization in the growth of the early United States. The furnace was established in 1771 by Ironmaster Mark Bird and operated as a furnace for the next 112 years.
The park’s facilities are currently open seven days a week, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Hopewell Furnace is located at 2 Mark Bird Lane, Elverson, PA 19520 about five miles south of Birdsboro, PA, off Route 345. Admission to the park is free. For more information, call 610-582-8773 or visit the park’s web site at www.nps.gov/hofu.
