Cornwall Borough Historical Resources
The Cornwall & Lebanon Railroad station, now the site of the "Root Beer Barrel" stop on the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail. Passengers from Mt. Gretna are disembarking the trolley. Notice in background the Gatekeeper's house for the Cornwall ironmaster's estate.
Our Borough has a surprising range of history, consider these compelling examples:
- Discovery of iron around 1740, to achieve bragging rights as the world's largest iron mine, and loaded with iron-rich magnetite ore
- Cornwall Iron Furnace, built 1742 - preserved and the only remaining cold blast iron furnace in the western hemisphere. Open for tours, its massive stone walls beckoning
- Home to the Grubb and Coleman iron master families, with generations of compelling stories (move over, "Dynasty," this is the real deal), spanning all periods of American history
- Plank roads, railroads, great mansions and architecture
- Great agriculture, horse-breeding
- 8 villages comprising the largest borough in the state, make that the nation
- Even a "Babe Ruth" baseball story
So the question is, "How Plugged In" are you?
If "Jeopardy!" held a trivia show specializing on our borough, would you be a champion contestant? How does one prepare for such an event?
Check out our resources - and if you have others to offer, let us know! We are constantly in search of new material (comment below)
https://www.cornwall-pa.com/community/page/history
Cornwall Iron Furnace YouTube Channel
Coming soon - our Centennial celebration in 2026
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