Flatenberg Blast Furnace
Just outside Smedjebacken lies Flatenberg Blast Furnace, one of Bergslagen’s best-preserved ironworks. In fact, the author and heritage advocate Karl-Erik Forsslund considered this mining environment to be the most remarkable in all of Sweden.
It is beautifully situated by Lake Norra Barken, surrounded by old miners’ farmsteads. Eight miners lived in these farms, collectively owning and producing their iron at Flatenberg Blast Furnace during the 1600s.
Although some of the farm buildings have been altered, one, Jan-Ersgården, near the road intersection to the furnace, still retains its enclosed courtyard, lofted storage house, and granary. Along the stream, there are old washhouses, showcasing how the farms looked in the past.
In the nearby forest, the miners made their charcoal, and from the mines at Humboberget, Nyberget, Håksberg, and Gräsberg, they extracted their iron ore. Each miner had their own stockpile on the ore yard by the high plateau beside the roasting furnace before it was time to roast the ore and then smelt it in the blast furnace.
The old charcoal storage houses where the charcoal was kept are gone now, but the pillars of one remain. These give a sense of how enormous even a single charcoal storage house was, as the blast furnace consumed vast amounts of charcoal.
Once the iron hardened into ingots, it was loaded onto boats or horse-drawn wagons and transported to nearby foundries. Some of it was even sledged to Stockholm during the winter, traveling over the ice. From there, it was loaded onto ships and sent to Europe.
The blast furnace was established in the 1500s, and in the early 1600s, the hammer forge received its privileges. Towards the end of World War I, the demand for iron decreased, and on August 20, 1918, the Flatenberg blast furnace was shut down for the last time.
Several older machines, such as ore crushers and blowers, remain in the machine house. The council house and roasting furnace bridge have been reconstructed. When plans to demolish the furnace emerged in 1930, Forsslund managed to preserve it as a museum.
FORERUNNERS – ON BUMPY ROADS
Farmers often supplemented their income by making deliveries to the foundries in winter. Many times, they would start in the middle of the night to cover as much ground as possible. Over 20 horses could set out in a convoy, but only the leading driver had to stay awake to ensure the horse followed the correct path over frozen lakes and bogs. The other drivers could rest bundled in hay or straw while their horses followed the lead horse.
Facts
Well-preserved mining blast furnace from the 1600s, featuring a roasting furnace, council house, and blast furnace. A walking trail circles the site with “Viewpoints” where older photographs show what the area looked like around 1915.
Self-guided visits are possible.
The site is well signposted. The furnace is open for guided tours during the summer. Call +46 (0)240 – 66 00 00 for information on timings.
Målning liten bild nr 2: Johan Ahlbäck
