Explore ironworks that helped win the Civil War

Starting on April 4, Scenic Hudson will resume guided tours of its West Point Foundry Preserve on the first Saturday of each month through November. The free, 90-minute tours will begin at 11 a.m. in the preserve’s parking lot at 68 Kemble Ave. A trail also connects the preserve to Cold Spring’s Metro-North station.

The monthly tours, which also will take place on May 2, June 6, July 4, Aug. 1, Sept. 5, Oct. 3 and Nov. 7, will focus on the history of West Point Foundry. It manufactured cannons — known as Parrott guns — credited with helping to win the Civil War, as well as some of the nation’s first steam engines, pipes for New York City’s water system, and machinery essential for the cotton and sugar industries.

As a new, exclusive feature of the tours, Scenic Hudson will display life-size images depicting the interiors of foundry buildings. These historic photographs will be displayed close to the locations in which they were taken, providing visitors with a rare glimpse inside the foundry’s operations.

Following accessible trails that trace historic rail lines and paths used by the ironworks’ largely immigrant workforce, the tours will describe West Point Foundry’s manufacturing process and highlight new design features at the preserve.

Scenic Hudson also has launched an online mobile tour that allows visitors exploring the trails at West Point Foundry Preserve — or anyone browsing the website — to experience the foundry’s sights and sounds. Available at foundrytour.org, the tour features sound effects and videos, narration and historic photographs of the foundry and its workers. Park visitors can access the tour using most recent smartphones or tablets with Internet access. Headphones are recommended.

For more information, visit scenichudson.org or sh50.org.