Before European immigrants and enslaved Africans lived and worked at Catoctin Furnace, the land was home to Susquehannocks, Five Nations Iroquois, Shawnee, Tuscarora, and Piscataway. After 1776, the iron industry dominated the village for 130 years until the growth of large corporations that produced iron more efficiently doomed the complex. In the early 20th century, company houses were purchased by families who had been employed in the furnace operation. In the 1970s, a planned expansion of US Route 15 threatened the furnace and historic village, but after a public outcry ignited interest in preserving the site, the Maryland State Highway Administration altered its plans and shifted the roadway expansion to the west. In 1973, The Catoctin Furnace Historical Society, Inc, was formed and continues its mission to preserve and restore this village. In Catoctin Furnace, the layers of history are deep and inclusive.