Le Marteau-Pilon (steam hammer), Le Creusot (71), Saône-et-Loire (71)

The steam hammer in Le Creusot dates from 1876 and at the time was the most powerful in the world, symbolising the industrial power of the town. The total structure weighs 545 tonnes, is twenty-one metres tall and was employed by Schneider et Cie. It was made in Essen and nicknamed 'Fritz'. Patenting rights were sold to Bethlehem Steel in Philadelphia in 1891, and it was the USA which constructed a more powerful hammer. However, the Bethlehem hammer was demolished in 1902, whereas the Le Creusot one continued until 1930. In this year it was dismantled but reconstructed in 1969 at the southern entrance to the town, where it still stands. It remains one of the last publically viewable steam hammers in the world. In 1981 it was recognised as a Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. This is a most impressive monument to an industrial past.