Hopewell Furnace remembers the contributions of the Civilian Conservation Corps

Hopewell Furnace invites the public to join in commemorating the contributions of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) with a special guided hike and encampment on site Saturday, September 28. All programming is free to the public and will run from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Join Park staff on a two-hour hike at 11 a.m., exploring the various places around the site where the CCC worked and temporarily called home. Reenactors in CCC attire will offer additional programs and demonstrations throughout the day thathighlight the role the CCC played in restoring Hopewell Furnaceas well as the organization's impact on the entire country during the Great Depression.

Activities will include mock CCC enlistment procedures, woodcutting and branding demonstrations, cooking, and view one of the historic tenant houses converted into a makeshift barracks. Cap off the day's activities with a performance by the Ringgold Band from 3:30p.m. to 5:30 p.m. playing in the park's upper parking lot. Bring a lawn chair and enjoy the sounds of the 1930s era, and others,echo throughout the furnace landscape.

Hopewell Furnace was established as a National Historic Site on August 3, 1938 and preserves the late 18th and early 19th century setting of an iron-making community, including the charcoal-fueled furnace, and its natural and cultural resources. The CCC's presence through the second half of the 1930s marked the beginning of restoration and public visitation to Hopewell Furnace.

The park's facilities are open Wednesday through Sunday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Hopewell Furnace is located at 2 Mark Bird Lane, Elverson, PA 19520 about five miles south of Birdsboro, PA, off Route 345. Admission to the park is free. For more information, call 610-582-8773 or visit the park's web site at www.nps.gov/hofu.