Ironwork added charisma to the architecture of 19th century Newburgh. It was both expressive and functional, many times based on historic patterns rendered into cast iron form. The railings of this 1860s townhouse resemble "grotesque" frescos from the Italian Renaissance. Makers of this railing employed a multi-step process to transform iron ore into pig iron, then melted and poured into molds of predetermined designs. New York City iron foundries most likely fabricated the elaborate ironwork for this residence, as their mold varieties were much more diverse than Newburgh's.

Between roughly 1850–1865, most of Newburgh's ironwork arrived in shipments from New York City vendors. Agents representing ironwork companies placed advertisements in Newburgh directories. By the early 1860s, the city common council opened a section of Grand Street between Washington and Broadway. The houses built on this block were therefore equipped with New York-made iron fences, gates, and staircase hardware. Balusters on this mid-1860s house are unique for their paired "devil's tail" motifs and central crossed circle. They match an example from Illustrations of Iron Architecture Made by the Architectural Iron Works of the City of New York (1865) by Daniel D. Badger, company head.

Before the 1850s surge of cast iron, many Hudson Valley cities produced decorative wrought iron, a malleable material and less carbon-dense than cast iron. It began to reappear in Newburgh by the late 1870s. Rather than cast iron patterns of the past two decades, builders chose more whimsical iron after examples from the Arts and Crafts movement. English in origin, the movement stressed unique artisanship and the maker's personal touch. In reality, like cast iron, these examples were mass-produced to appear individualized. This gate and fence incorporate wrought heart shapes, fleur-de-lis, and other curled, eclectic elements. The ironwork here postdates the house, which was built in the 1830s.

St. George's Episcopal Church boasts two iron fences: one wrought, the other cast. According to legend, the parish was given this early 19th century wrought iron fence from Trinity Church, Wall Street, New York. It's also possible the fence was Newburgh-made, making it among the earliest examples in the city. Note the lithe Federal style motifs and sunburst with curled ends.

The long spiked fence at the church's perimeter is cast iron, dating to about 1870. These large gate posts have polygonal bodies with a scallop trim, flat ball top, and finial.

Unfortunately some ironwork in the city hasn't been replaced, but some property owners have repaired what remains. On this rowhouse stoop, the ironwork on the left bannister has been braced with a modern railing. These swirling, foliate (resembling foliage) S-curve balusters were used for the staircases on this rowhouse block. None remain fully intact.

Similar to the S-curve balusters at 14 Farrington, those observed here on Liberty were extremely popular. This baluster shape, which combines a foliated oval with an anthemion top, was used for scores of bannisters and fences throughout eastern Newburgh. The pattern was almost always paired with these foliated newel posts, which may take after early 19th century wooden newel post carvings. The French-inspired mansions on this block were constructed in the 1860s with mostly identical ironwork.

Lavish curls and framed lozenge shapes compose this wrought iron railing at the Liberty–South Street corner. Built about 1900, this house's iron shapes and newel posts are also found on residences by Newburgh architect Frank E. Estabrook on blocks west of here.

On South and Chambers Streets, a dense block of Second Empire style rowhouses (mid–1860s) dominates the landscape. Each house is built of brick with cast iron window sills, lintels, and the prevalent foliate newel-anthemion oval combo from 286 Liberty. Absence of that pairing may suggest a later remodeling. The balusters here are just as remarkable though, using a harp-like shape and grapes in a possible allusion to Dionysus: the ancient god of partying.

When English-born architect Frederick C. Withers designed this church in 1857, he planned a stone and iron fence to surround it. Instead, the First Presbyterian Church, his client, opted for a medieval-inspired cast iron fence on its South and Grand Street fronts. The arches within the fence reference cathedral construction and Romanesque architecture; the quatrefoil rows beneath are Gothic. Withers probably designed the iron door hinges seen beyond too. Like this situation, his fence ideas for other church commissions were seldom realized.

Mason-builder John Little erected this row of houses in the 1850s–60s. The balusters, worn by rust, show bellflower motifs above four-pointed circles. One surviving newel has a scaled body with a spherical top between foliate shapes. A similar pattern for these balusters is seen in the New York Wire Railing Co.'s A New Phase in Iron Manufacture (1855). Little used ironwork resembling other patterns from this catalog in his 1850s buildings, including his nearby Daniel G. Leonard House (ca. 1852–54), 196 Grand Street.

Isaac Stanton of the Highland Ironworks fabricated this fence for Old Town Cemetery in the summer of 1871. As the 1860s progressed, Newburgh depended less on New York City as founders like Stanton expanded their operations. Whereas Newburgh foundries had earlier specialized in boilers or ship parts, Stanton began promoting himself as an ornamental ironwork producer. The cemetery fence has miniscule yet but highly-detailed spike-tops also seen at the Second Ward School (1872–73) at Grand and Campbell Streets.

Nature had contorted the wrought iron fence in front this John Little-designed house. A gate would've been held on the side posts, which have turned bodies and textured spherical tops. Dating to the 1880s, this example shows Little's adaption to trends, being just a block from his 1850s house at 204 Grand.

The way these rope-thick iron pieces affix to the fence are the result of a late 1850s patent. Though anthemion oval balusters were commonly used, here we see an unusual form—twisted as a pretzel—which slid onto horizontal iron bars joined with the side posts. The posts have fluted, Egyptianizing bodies.

Anna A. Rogers purchased this lot in April 1876 from descendants of David Crawford. Her and her husband Robert Rogers, son of a powder mill proprietor, built this house soon after. About a decade later, in the summer of 1888, the Rogers commissioned Newburgh founders Coldwell, Wilcox & Co. to fabricate a massive cast iron portico for the house and likely the perimeter wrought iron fences. It is the most extensive, elaborate, and intact ironwork ever designed for a residence in Newburgh.

Brewer Jonas Williams also dramatically remodeled his residence. When purchased in 1868, Jonas and his first wife Maria owned a 3-bay house. After the passing of his second wife in 1877, Jonas set about an extensive remodeling, expanding it to the 3-story, 4-bay brownstone mansard-roofed house it proudly is today. Carpenters William Hilton & Son gutted the interior of its 1850s woodwork and began anew. It is probable the Hiltons also selected the mansard roof's iron cresting and this highly Gothic fence.