Harbison-Walker Refractories Company, Industrial historic district in Mount Union, Pennsylvania.
Harbison-Walker Refractories Company is an industrial complex in Mount Union built around the turn of the 20th century with numerous brick structures and equipment buildings. The site contains kilns, molding shops, and processing areas that produced special refractory bricks designed to withstand extreme heat in steel mills and furnaces.
The plant opened in 1899 as the first United States facility built specifically for making silica bricks used in steel production. The factory became a pioneer in its field, establishing methods and infrastructure that influenced later industrial construction across the country.
The Mount Union facility shaped local employment patterns and industrial development through its manufacturing innovations and production of essential refractory materials.
The site is no longer active but remains visible in the landscape and has been documented through historical records and photographs. Visitors interested in industrial history can explore the complex from outside and learn about its operations through archival materials and local historical documentation.
The complex included specialized buildings such as brick kilns, an engine repair shop, and crushing machinery all dating from the early 1900s. This intact collection of purpose-built structures offers a window into how steel mills sourced and processed their materials a century ago.
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