 7 and 8 stacks at Alburtis were reputedly the last furnaces in the country to use anthracite, converting to coke in 1914.The shift away from local ores and fuels eliminated much of the original competitive advantage of the Lehigh Valley furnaces.Against this backdrop, President Fackenthal resigned on May 1, 1913, after recommending a program of retrenchment and abandonment of the old furnaces at Alburtis.