History of anthracite coal mining in Pennsylvania in 1807 (Latzko, 3). In 1810, 350 tons of anthracite was mined in Pennsylvania. The use of anthracite coal was restricted due to the difficulties in transporting it efficiently, and the industry was still small and undeveloped (Latzko, 3). The War of 1812 against Great Britain increased the usage of anthracite coal. Prior to the war, citizens of the nation’s urban centers such as New York and Philadelphia received most of their coal fuel needs from Britain and Virginia’s bituminous coal supplies (Dublin, Licht, 12). During the war the British blockade of American ports severely limited the supply of British
Anthracite iron technique & process, which he had conceived in an attempt to improve the efficiency of conventionally fueled furnaces. The first person to employ the hot blast technique to anthracite smelting was Dr. Frederick W. Gesenhainer, who filed for a patent on the process in 1831 and received it in 1833. In 1836, he tried smelting anthracite iron on a practical scale at his property, Valley Furnace, near Pottsville, Pennsylvania, while in the same year White & Hazard's LC&N Co. built two experimental blast furnaces in Mauch Chunk. He produced a small quantity of iron, but due to mechanical breakdowns, could