The Rich History of Iron Mining in Morris County

The Appalachian Mountains stretch from central Alabama to Labrador, Canada. Along this 1,500-mile path, the system is split up into seven different physiographic provinces that contain distinct geologic backgrounds. New Jersey is one of them.

The Appalachian Mountains are an estimated 480 million years old and were once much taller than they are now. Geologists say the ancient mountains once stood as high as the Alps. Over time, they became eroded due to forces of nature such as the wind and rain. All that remains visible are the still impressive ridges of the worn and misshapen granite that continues as the Highlands of New Jersey.

While nature was shaving away the ancient mountains, she thoughtfully tucked into its foundation stone pockets of iron ore, and lens-shaped bodies of iron oxide called magnetite. Most iron ore is red or brown, but magnetite is black. These ore bodies are found in various places along this range of mountains and were one of the chief economic resources of America during the 18th and early 19th centuries. The richest of these deposits was found in Morris County.

The mining industry of New Jersey dates to the late 1600's when copper was first mined by Dutch settlers along the Delaware River, in Warren County. One of the first iron mines in the United States was in the Mt. Hope section of Rockaway Township, in Morris County.

It was iron ore mining that brought the earliest permanent settlers into the area, around 1710. There are indications that some copper mining had been done perhaps 25 years earlier, most likely by the Dutch. Nearly 92-percent of the state’s mines collected iron.

According to the Encyclopedia of New Jersey (2004), the earliest miners in New Jersey were Dutch and English (primarily Welsh), migrating to the new world in the 1700s.

Later, the Irish, followed by eastern European peoples came to dominate Morris County’s mining labor force. The mining industry in Morris County helped to establish North Jersey as a major producer of essential minerals beginning in the early 18th century.

The New Jersey Geological Survey (NJGS) has scanned the mine maps in its collection. There are 622 published and unpublished mine maps that date from 1867 to 1983. The figures may be higher since there is a 150-year gap where no records have been found.

As the reputation of vast iron resources grew, it helped to establish New Jersey’s importance to the mining industry. The British took note of the increasing popularity of iron products and the British Parliament enacted a law that forced the colonies to ship all pig and bar iron to England for processing, then returned as nails, horseshoes, axes, and cook ware. The returning products were affixed a Duty which further reduced any profit to the citizens.

One area that showed a high density of black ore was Succasunna, from the Lenni-Lenape Native American word for "Black Rock," most likely due to the rich iron-ore deposits in the area.

Tradition has it that the Native Americans knew of these deposits and told the colonists of the black stones. It is also said that the Native Americans worked the iron and that arrowheads and other articles of iron made by the Native Americans had been found around Morristown. This seems extremely unlikely. The Native Americans never learn to smelt iron. If they had any iron implements, these must have been made for them by the colonists.

The first iron forge of which there is a definite record was built at Whippany in 1710, by Judge Budd and John Ford. It marks the beginning of the industrial era, and it was to make the Ford family one of the wealthiest and most influential in the country.

These early ironworks were simple affairs. They used local wood and waterpower, the latter required to work the huge bellows above the hearth to carry off the fumes and smoke. The forge was a hearth with a hood and earlier forges were made of stone or brick. Iron ore and coal were piled on the hearth. The heat of the fire was increased by the air coming from the bellows above.

More ore and more charcoal were added. The operators stirred the hot mass using a stick of green wood which gave off more carbon monoxide as it charred. More and more of the growing iron particles came together and formed a spongy mass of iron, interlaced with veins of slag. This mass is called a bloom and the forgers often spoke of the bloomery.

When the bloom was removed from the hearth, and while still hot, it was hammered. In the early days with sledgehammers, later with a trip hammer driven by waterpower. Still later, power-driven rollers and squeezes were devised which would do the job faster and more evenly.

What slag was left were thread-like strands which were usually too small to cause flaws in the metal. This was wrought iron, a relatively soft, but easily worked and suitable for most of the usage of the day.

Remnants and markers of Morris County's mining history can still be found in many northern towns, obviously including Mine Hill. Boonton grew around the Ironworks built there in 1830. Ironia, Denville, Randolph and Rockway were also heavily into iron mining.

Mining was extremely dangerous. There were crushing disabling injuries, cave-ins, deadly gasses, and disease. The 600+ abandoned mines of northern New Jersey represent a legacy of achievement in the face of often fatal accidents.

Iron mining in New Jersey was mostly shut down around 1883 when the iron could be imported for less cost. However, the Beach Glen mine was one of the exceptions.

A trainload of miners on their way to a 12–14-hour day. (Credit Hibernia Mine, Mt. Hope)

  The mine was worked on and off from 1851 on when two openings were made 400 feet apart. In 1900, at a depth of 475 feet, a rich magnetite vein was discovered 14 feet wide yielding 56 to 60-percent iron. Up to this point, only lean ore had been found. 7,000 tons of ore were removed but the plummeting price of ore closed the mine again in 1903. The mine reopened in 1923, working sporadically until 1930.

 It is estimated that there is at least 600,000 tons of ore still buried in the mountains of New Jersey.