Sloss Furnaces is one of the cultural attractions one can find in Birmingham, Alabama. Known as a bustling hub of culture and heritage, Birmingham is famous for its beautiful golf courses, year-round calendar of entertainment, and world-class dining. Sloss Furnace is one of the spotlights of the city.

About the Landmark

Sloss Furnaces is a 32-acre blast furnace plant where pig iron was made for nearly 100 years, it is now an industrial museum and a center for the creation and exhibition of metal art. Designated as a National Historic Landmark, it is the only 20th-century blast furnace in the U.S. to be preserved and restored for public use.

The furnace site, which is located along a wide strip of land set aside in Birmingham’s original city plan for railroads and industry, hosts thousands of students each year through their education programs. It is also a concert and festival venue. 

Activities you can engage in at the sloss furnaces include;

– Iron Pour Field Trip for Students: Students tour the historic site, learning how the furnaces worked, the stories of the men who worked at Sloss and their experiences, and why Sloss and the iron industry were important to Birmingham. They can also make their own cast iron art and witness a live iron pour by the Sloss Metal Arts Program. 

– Guided Tours: These include the virtual tours you can take online, the free self-guided that lead you around the site, and the public guided tours that are booked on appointments only. 

– Sloss Metal Arts Workshop: Sloss Furnaces provides workshops, exhibitions, and conferences on all aspects of metalworking, with a focus on the use of cast iron as a sculpture medium. The center has open studios that give professional artists access to the foundry facilities needed to cast their work, while regular sculpture workshops in casting, welding, and forging are designed for people with no metalwork experience.

– Sloss Furnaces is also a premier event’s venue for your wedding, corporate function, formal, birthday party, reunion, and every event in between. The side has six unique rental areas which will make for a memorable location for any event.

You can also pay a visit to the Visitor Center, read storyboards of Sloss history, visit the Gift Shop, and browse the gallery filled with local art.

Other Information on the Landmark

The museum is situated at 20 32nd Street North Birmingham, AL 35222. Operating hours are from 10:00 A.M to 4:00 P.M. from Tuesdays to Saturdays.