In 1878 the Nova Scotia Forge Company was constructed on a site occupying the east bank of the East River of Pictou in Trenton, replacing the Hope Iron Works. The new plant sought markets in producing forgings for the booming railway industry, creating an intense demand for raw steel and iron. The Nova Scotia Steel Company was established in 1882 on the same site to supply raw material to the Nova Scotia Forge Company and produced the first steel in Canada at its Trenton plant using the Siemens process in an open-hearth furnace in 1883. Both companies soon merged to form the Nova Scotia Steel and Forge Company.