W.A. Young & Sons Foundry and Machine Shop was built by William A. Young in Rices Landing on land he acquired in 1900 and 1902, with the two-story frame machine shop constructed from lumber from the family farm and a local sawmill. Young expanded the operation by adding a back shop and, in 1908, a foundry with a charging cupola and a traveling crane. The business produced parts and equipment for area coal mines, steamboats, railroads, and local businesses, with much of its work coming from Greene County's growing coal industry and from firms such as Crucible Fuel Company and Crucible Steel. The shop also took part in World War II war training programs, first for men and later for women, teaching the use of machine tools. After Young's death in 1940, his sons Walter and Carl continued the operation until 1965. The complex remained intact with its buildings, machine tools, hand tools, and other equipment, then passed from the family to private investors in 1979, to the Greene County Historical Society in 1985, and to Rivers of Steel Heritage Corporation in 2009, before receiving recognition as a National Historic Landmark in 2017.
