Inspecting the blast furnace charging hole on a Ranger-guided tour

GENERAL INFORMATION

There are two Ranger-guided tours given at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site: a tour of the Iron Works House and a tour of the Iron Works Industrial Site. The only way into the house is on a tour, whereas you can see the Industrial Site on your own if need be. However, the highlight of a visit to the park is the Industrial Site tour because the Ranger will actually crank up some of the machinery so you can see how it works. On your own, all you can do is look at it. I’d even go so far as to say don’t bother visiting if you can’t catch the Industrial Site tour.

Tours are typically held from June 1st through October 31st on Wednesdays through Sundays. From mid-June through Labor Day, tours are held twice a day. Prior to mid-June and after Labor Day, there is only one tour held each day on Wednesdays through Fridays, but two tours are still held on the weekends. Times are arranged so that you can catch both the Industrial Site and House tour back-to-back. For the exact tour opening date and a current tour schedule, see the National Park Service’s Things to Do web page for Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site.

I suggest arriving to the park no earlier than an hour before the tour you want to take because outside of the tours, there’s not much to do. Arriving an hour early gives you time to register for the Iron Works House tour (no registration is required for the Industrial Site tour) and check out the Iron Works Museum. After the tours you can walk the short Nature Trail, which starts at the far end of the Industrial Site.

For those who can’t catch either of the tours—and still insist on visiting—there is an excellent Audio Tour on the National Park Service’s website for Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site. You can either download this in advance, or if you have a cell phone with Internet service, you can go to the website and stream the audio while at the park (cell service in the area is good). If you are wondering why the audio tour is so detailed in its descriptions, particularly concerning where to walk, it was created with blind people in mind.

IRON WORKS HOUSE TOUR

Iron Works House

The forty-five minute tour of the Iron Works House is limited to eight people, so you must sign up in person at the Visitor Center on the day of the tour. If you have a group of ten or more, you must make a reservation in advance by calling the park at (781) 233-0050. I visited on a Saturday in mid-August and there was only one other person on the morning tour with me, and he was the park’s blacksmith. Needless to say, Saugus Iron Works is not one of the more popular National Park sites.

Two floors of the Iron Works House are visited, and there are no elevators. Disabled guests will not be able to see the upper floor, and even getting into the ground floor of the house requires being lifted up two steps (see the front door in the photo above).

Some rooms are furnished with antique and reproduction furniture of the time period, but no original furniture remains. Probate records still exist—records of what was in a house when the owner died—and these records were referred to when determining what sort of furniture to include. Other than that, it’s just a guess as to what the rooms looked like. Most of the decorations are based on typical furnishings of other homes in the late 1600s.

First floor parlor

Upstairs bedroom

Study

Other rooms are used to house exhibits. I am not a fan of exhibits inside a house that can only be seen on a tour because there is no time to read the information. However, in this case the Ranger did summarize most of what was on display.

Exhibit inside the Iron Works House

IRON WORKS INDUSTRIAL SITE TOUR

Iron Works Industrial Site

There is no limit on the number of participants for the Iron Works Industrial Site Tour, so there is no need to register in advance for the tour. Just meet at the outdoor model located on the pathway to the blast furnace a few minutes before the tour begins.

Model of Saugus Iron Works

When you arrive at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site you will find yourself on a hill above the industrial complex. The tour begins at the charging hole of the blast furnace, which is also at the top of the hill, but to reach the rest of the site you must walk down into the valley (and of course walk back up when done). There is a ramp for those who can’t climb stairs, but if you are in a wheelchair, you will most likely still need assistance unless you are a Paralympic champion. Wheelchairs can access the charging hole of the blast furnace, the casting shed attached to the furnace, and the forge, but not the slitting mill. There are two steps just to get in the mill, then a series of steps to see the equipment.

Hilly terrain at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site

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