A Brief History of Greenwood Furnace State Park

What is the Greenwood Furnace? a State Park? a wood furnace?

Greenwood Furnace State Park in Pennsylvania is a recreational area covering 423 acres, with a six-acre lake stocked with trout. The state park is located 10 minutes North of nearby Belleville, PA and is part of the Rothrock State Forest. As it turns out, the Greenwood Furnace is also a state-of-the-art central heating wood furnace.

Are there any similarities between the Greenwood Furnace State Park and the renewable energy appliance Greenwood Furnace? Only in the present time, now that the furnace of the State Park is no longer in operation. Make no mistake: Greenwood Furnace State Park in its earlier life bears absolutely no resemblance to the wood burning hydronic furnace known as the Greenwood Furnace.

The Industrial Age was a particularly dirty time, and the historic Greenwood Furnace refers to a 19 th century iron making community. In the midst of this idyllic town was an inferno, with furnaces operating at 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, the resulting smoke and cinders creating a town painted all in shades of gray and black. At night, there was no need for lanterns, since the glow of the fires glow lit the sky.

Not very idyllic, is it? The town was utilitarian, where people lived because they had to earn a living, and the Industrial Age was made many wonderful things possible, but that was then. The historic town of Greenwood Furnace is now pretty and green and scenic, a trip back to a time that, in essence, never was.

And the Greenwood Furnace of the present day? The modern technological marvel that burns clean, uses a sustainable source of energy, is environmentally sound and represents a new standard in home heating? The Greenwood Furnace of the present day personifies the Greenwood Furnace State Park family destination of today. No sign of charcoal here, no soot, no ash. Green. Safe. Clean.

The environmentally friendly Greenwood Wood Furnace might be found living in harmony with the nearby residents of Greenwood Furnace State Park and the Rothrock State Forest. The contrast between the infernos of yesteryear and today’s environmentally world could not be more pronounced.

We call this progress.