The Historic Village at Allaire

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The Foreman's Cottage is the oldest brick building in the Historic Village at Allaire, constructed in 1827 specifically as a residence for the Company Foreman. The one and an half story home has a second floor sleeping and storage area with its own hearth as well as a cooking hearth on the first floor living area and an internal chimney. The foreman's cottage is uniquely situated, originally having a clear view of the blast furnace and casting shed. The Company Foreman was able to look out the Cottage's front doors or windows and, judging by the color of the smoke rising from the furnace cupola's be able to determine the quality of a blast. Yellow smoke would indicate too much sulfur or charcoal in the blast, a white smoke meant too much calcium or flux, a black smoke indicated too much carbon which could be a result of too much iron ore or charcoal. Visitors to the Foreman's Cottage now visit the building's back door passing by a 19th century medicinal herb garden.

In 1836 the Foreman's Cottage was occupied by Jacob Johnson and his wife Sarah Jane Miller. The Johnsons were area residents, both children of farming families and, as foreman, Johnson and his wife would have lived an upper middle class lifestyle during their residence at the Howell Works. The Johnsons had no children while living at the Howell Works, but it is believed that Johnson's sister Emeline frequently stayed with the couple while she courted molder John Roach, according to Hal Allaire's papers. Roach went on to become known as the Father of American Shipbuilding, holding over 100 patents and producing the majority of US Naval vessels between the years 1868 and 1886.