Puiraveau blast furnace (or Puyravaud) à Vitrac-Saint-Vincent en Charente

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Origin and history

The Puyravaud blast furnace, located in the Rivaillou valley in Vitrac-Saint-Vincent, finds its origins in a pre-existing forge probably active in the late eighteenth century. The first steps to add a blast furnace began in 1803, carried by L. Brun and J. Durand, owners of the forge. After a royal order of 10 March 1819, the blast furnace was finally built in 1820 by L. Brun, as evidenced by the date engraved on the structure. This steel site, marked by massive and almost square construction, becomes a key component of local iron and iron production.

In the years 1840-1845 the company went under the direction of Labonne, which employed 34 workers and produced 226,000 francs annually. However, competition from the northern French and English industries led to a definitive shutdown of the blast furnace in the 1860s. The forge remained in operation for a few more years before being demolished, while the casting hall was transformed into a wheat mill in 1873 by Raballet, the new owner. Today, only the blast furnace, a second dam upstream, and the remains of a building probably dedicated to administrative or residential functions remain.

The site, registered with the Historic Monuments since 1994, also maintains hydraulic installations essential to its operation: canals, dikes, biefs and two ponds. These vestiges illustrate the importance of hydraulic energy in the industrial processes of the time. The master house, dominating the installations, also recalls the social hierarchy that structured these industrial complexes, where owners, forging masters and workers lived in both a technical and a residential setting. The gradual abandonment of the site reflects the economic upheavals of the 19th century, marked by the rise of the northern industrial regions and the British industrial revolution.

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