[1][5] Beginning in 1800, the heirs of Curtis' brother Peter Grubb, Jr. rebuilt their business on the minority interest they retained, primarily in the Cornwall Iron Mines, and operated for nearly 100 years out of Mount Hope.
The business thrived at Cornwall, operating until 1765 under lease by a group of businessmen named Cury & Company, while Grubb removed to Wilmington, Delaware, where he lived out his life.
The ironmaster brothers were both Patriots of the American Revolution and Colonels of local militia; their iron works developed and supplied significant quantities of cannon and other munitions to the war effort.
With the heavy demand for iron products and the accompanying inflation during the war, the brothers (and other ironmasters) realized handsome profits in the service of their new country.
[1][5] The Grubb brothers unfortunately had a serious falling out beginning in 1783, when Curtis' pending remarriage spawned inheritance anxieties by his oldest son Peter III, 26, who had been a Captain of the Continental Army and a prisoner of war.
Peter Jr. feared for the future supply of raw pig iron to his Hopewell Forges that was to become his legacy to his sons, so he decided to build his own furnace at a place south of Cornwall he called Mount Hope, where he had purchased 212 acres.
As a result, in 1895 Curtis' remaining heirs sold their 3/6 interest to Coleman, and by 1803 he had acquired the Hopewell Forges and 5/6 of the rest of the original properties.
[2][3] Henry's holdings grew to include at least three iron manufacturing operations, over 6,500 acres of land and a 1/6 interest in the Cornwall ore banks, all managed from Mount Hope.
[2][4] Edward was sent to Europe in 1830 to study the latest iron technology, apparently a worthwhile family investment in the future growth of the business.
[2] Clement apparently decided to strike out on his own, as he resigned from E. & C.B in 1845 and sold his half interest in the Mount Hope Estate to his younger brother Alfred for $25,000.
The charcoal- and anthracite-based iron manufacturing business rather quickly succumbed to newer technology and the transition to the steel industry that located further west.
A cold blast charcoal fired furnace, it had a reported output capacity of 32 tons per week and supplied pig iron to six local and Philadelphia forges.
The brothers were enthusiastic Patriots and their iron works supplied cannon and other munitions to the Revolutionary War effort during their ownership, which ended with Curtis' death in 1789.
As part of the sale to Coleman, Peter III reserved for himself and his heirs the perpetual right to remove sufficient ore from Cornwall Iron Mines to supply one furnace.
While it is unclear when Hopewell ceased operations, it produced 250 tons in 1833,[25] but probably closed before 1854 when Coleman's Speedwell Forge, also on Hammer Creek, was shut down.
The enclave at its peak contained nearly 30 outbuildings (including the Hope Church, built in 1848-9), most constructed of locally quarried red sandstone and enclosed by a wall of the same material.
[2][8] The last family member to live at Mount Hope was Clement's daughter Daisy Elizabeth Brooke Grubb, who inherited it from her father along with holdings worth six million dollars.
[2] The property was subdivided and mostly sold off by the subsequent owners, but the mansion and some surrounding land was bought by Charles Romito for a winery in 1980 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The original inn was built by Samuel Smith sometime after 1739; Henry Bates Grubb added the majestic stonework structure in 1811 and named it Mount Vernon Estate.
The forge processed pig iron produced at nearby Mary Ann Furnace, and had supplied cannon and shot to the Continental Army, probably under the ownership of James Smith, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Lifespan = 1765 – c. 1855, 90 years; 1802 – c. 1855, 53 years in Grubb family Furnace type = Charcoal cold blast Ore source = Chestnut Hills Mines Production = 400 tons/year (forge)[29] Acreage = 150 In 1803 Henry Bates Grubb purchased land from Gen. Timothy Green, on Manada Creek in the northwest part of East Hanover Township in Dauphin County, about 60 miles east of Mount Hope.
[7] The Chestnut Hill Ore Bank, acquired by Clement Brooke Grubb by 1851, was about eight miles west of Lancaster, at Silver Spring near Columbia.
Together, these two furnaces had an annual capacity of over 20,000 tons of pig iron, which was well known for its quality for boiler plate, bars, nails and foundry work.
It was built in 1845 by Peter Haldeman, but changed hands several times after 1855, producing only sporadically until 1865 when, after a long period of idleness it was blown in again under the proprietorship of the firm Denney and Hess.
The furnace was rarely out of blast and with several remodellings to implement technological advancements, it produced 17,000 tons of pig iron per year by the late 19th century.
It is not unreasonable to assume that the Grubbs assisted with the furnace's major technological upgrade in 1889, especially since Ella Jane would have been an heiress to her father's sizable estate that year.
The furnace was acquired by Bethlehem Steel, who deeded it to the Hay Creek Valley Historical Association in 1979; the ruins have been enhanced by local historians and are open to visitors.
But as a condition of that sale Peter reserved for himself and his heirs the right of access to remove "for as long as grass grows and water flows" sufficient ore to supply "one furnace".
Peter later, in 1883, sold his remaining share of the iron mines, along with these rights, to George Ege to supply his Reading Furnace in Berks County.
As a result, in 1884, the company decided to market only one kind of pig iron called "Robesonia", made exclusively from Cornwall ore, which was consumed in large quantities.