This blast furnace was built for the Earl of Moira in 1804 to smelt iron using locally available iron ore and coal coverted to coke. The site is adjacent to the Ashby Canal for transport of finished products.

Whilst brought into blast in 1806 and operated intermittently until 1811 the furnace was not a success and was abandoned with a charge still partly smelted inside. The adjacent foundry continued until 1844 using imported iron and was demolished in the later 19th century.

The bridgehouse and the blowing engine house, which was a separate building to the side of the furnace, were converted to dwellings and survived. By the 1970s they had become derelict and affected by mining subsidence and the engine house was demolished. The furnace and bridgehouse were saved after pressure from historian Philip Riden and Leicestershire Industrial History Society. The site is now scheduled as an ancient monument and the site and museum within the buildings are operated by the Moira Furnace Museum Trust.