Ruffner Mountain
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Ruffner Mountain is a section of the Red Mountain ridge that runs from Red Gap through Irondale.
It was named for Virginia geologist William Henry Ruffner who surveyed the mineral resources of the ridge in 1882.
The mountain was intensively mined and quarried by the Sloss-Sheffield Steel & Iron Company until the early 1950s. Developmental pressures spurred area residents to organize and secure the preservation of the ridge as the Ruffner Mountain Nature Preserve, now encompassing 1,100 acres of forest managed for recreation, environmental education and wildlife conservation.