Sloss Furnaces, a Birmingham-based iron-manufacturing complex, was established in 1881. The furnace and its various owners played a large role in the economic development of Birmingham. The site was declared a National Historical Landmark in 1981, one of the few industrial sites to be so designated, and offers visitors a chance to experience Birmingham's industrial history. It is now an educational museum and home to a community of metal-working artists..
HOURS OF OPERATION:
Monday - CLOSED TO PUBLIC, Tuesday-Saturday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm, Closed Sunday/Monday . *Self Guided Tours* The self-guided tours allow people the opportunity to explore the site on their own, while reading about how the furnaces worked and the story of the men who worked there. The self-guided tour brochure explains the process while the informative signs throughout the site expand on the story by including science, history, and social themes associated with Sloss Furnaces. Self-guided tours are free to the public and are offered during open hours: Tuesday-Saturday 10am-4pm. *Please note that the entrance gate to the site will be closed at 3:30pm each day, so no visitors will be able to enter the site after 3:30pm* For additional information or to book a tour, please contact Ty Malugani at 205-254-2245 or tyler.malugani@birminghamal.gov
What to do?:
To recieve credit for finding this Virtual Cache and to prove that you visited Sloss Furnaces you will need to answer the following four questions in an email or message to me the C/O, and complete the two photo tasks (Posting them with your log). The hints to the questions are to be found under "Additional Hints”. Please do not post any photos of the markers mentioned in the hints, photos of the Self-Guided Tour Map, or give away any of the answers in your logs. Thanks! Please DO NOT climb over the fences or handrails, or climb on any of the structures.
Most of all I hope you all have as much fun with this one as I had researching it and putting it together! Many thanks to my son DA-BOY for helping me with this Virtual. We had a blast exploring Sloss and we know you will too!
If you too had a blast or enjoyed this Virtual Cache please consider adding a favorite point. Thanks!
Question #1:
What is the oldest building on site and what did it house?
Question #2:
How many tons of iron a day did the two blast furnaces of Sloss produce?
Question #3:
What is the name of the assistant foundryman known as the "Ghost in Sloss Furnaces" and how did he die?
Question #4:
How many men worked at Sloss when they shut down in 1971?
Tasks:
You are to take two photos. First take and post a photo of yourself and /or you GPS/smartphone with the Sloss watertower in the background. See photo "Task #1 Example" which is from the Slag Pit vantage point. Second take and post a photo of any other part of Sloss Furnances that you find interesting, such as some of the metal arts sculptures found on site. See photo "Task #2 Example". You are by no means limited to two photos but those are the required photos for this Virtual Cache.
Task #1 Example 
Task #2 Example. 
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Virtual Reward - 2017/2018
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.