,,the ,,blacksmith in ,eighteenth-,century ,,williamsburg ,an ,account of his ,life ,times and of his ,craft ,williamsburg ,craft ,series ,,williamsburg ,published by ,colonial ,williamsburg ,,mcmlxxviii ,the ,blacksmith in ,eighteenth-,century ,williamsburg ,illustration3 ,decorative capital ,iron seemeth a simple metal1 but in its nature are many mysteries1 wrote ,joseph ,glanvill1 a seventeenth-century ,english churchman4 ,to the contrary1 ,henry ,wadsworth ,longfellow1 two centuries later1 found nothing mysterious about the worker in iron4 ,his brawny blacksmith 7long hair and all7 embodied every simple virtue3 he owed money to no man1 prayed in church on ,sundays1 and earned an honest living by the sweat of his honest brow4 ,longfellow may have realized that he was penning a swan song for the village blacksmith1 whose forge and anvil could not last far into the factory age4 ,most probably1 however1 the poet did not think of himself as reducing to the level of small-town banality the lusty craftsman whose precursors forged thunderbolts for the gods4 ,to primitive peoples1 it seems1 there has always been something supernatural about the smith4 ,he tamed fire to his will4 ,he turned the ores of earth into magic and invincible weapons1 or into prosaically peaceful tools4 ,he himself became a god3 ,osiris of ,egypt1 ,hephaestus to the ancient ,greeks1 ,vulcan of ,roman theology1 ,odin in ,norse myth4 ,or he turned into a whole race of demigods--giant ,cyclops or dwarf ,nibelungs--having mystical skills in metalwork4 ,,seekers ,,for ,,gold ,,and ,,iron ,down through all recorded civilizations man has valued gold as the most precious of metals4 ,yet in every civilization since man learned to smelt and forge it1 iron has in fact been the metal most valuable to him4 ,the paradox is more apparent than real4 ,iron is a common metal1 and 7with steel7 can be put to an almost unlimited variety of uses--including the working of other metals4 ,its real value to man is utilitarian1 although it may be employed for decorative and even monetary purposes4 ,gold1 on the other hand1 although of somewhat limited usefulness1 is comparatively rare and is valued more for that than for its durable beauty4 ,it was1 in part1 the hope of finding gold--as the ,spanish had found it in ,mexico and ,peru--that moved ,sir ,walter ,raleigh to send colonizing ventures to ,north ,america4 ,but any resource that might bring wealth to the gentlemen adventurers in ,london and to ,england itself was not to be overlooked4 ,thomas ,hariot1 one of those who reached ,roanoke ,island with ,raleigh's initial colonists in #aehe1 reported that3 ,in two places of the countrey specially1 one about fourescore1 the other six score miles from the fort or place where we dwelt1 we found nere the water side the ground to be rocky1 which by the triall of a ,minerall man was found to hold iron richly4 ,it is found in many places of the country els4 ,illustration3 ,around the edges of a brass clock face made in ,england about #agej and now in the possession of ,colonial ,williamsburg1 some unknown engraver depicted ironworking operations4 ,here1 above the numbers #aa and #ab on the clock face1 open-pit miners are shown digging and hauling ore4 ,nothing further is known of these discoveries1 including their exact location1 for the ,roanoke colony did not survive4 ,but the settlement made in #afjg at ,jamestown did endure4 ,sending careful instructions1 the sponsoring ,virginia ,company of ,london directed the adventurers to ,virginia to look not only for gold but for iron ore4 ,among the first group of settlers was ,george ,read1 a blacksmith1 to be joined the following year by ,richard ,dole of the same craft1 and ,peter ,keffer1 gunsmith4 ,no doubt some of these workers in iron--perhaps all three of them--had a hand in the experimental smelting and forging of local bog iron during ,jamestown's first year or two4 ,captain ,john ,smith reported that the colony's best commoditie was ,iron which we made into little chissels4 ,archaeological excavations at ,jamestown and at nearby ,denbigh ,plantation in recent years have disclosed the sites of what appear to have been small furnaces for smelting iron ore4 ,at the same time1 the colonists were shipping ore back to ,england1 seven tons of iron being smelted at ,bristol from ,virginia ore as early as #afjh4 ,four years later1 ,william ,strachey wrote3 ,sir ,tho3 ,dale hath mencioned in his ,letters to the ,worthies8 of the ,councell of a goodly ,iron myne1 and ,capt ,newport hath brought home of that mettell so sufficient a tryall1 as there hath bene made #af4 or #ag4 tonne of ,iron1 so good as the ,east ,indian ,marchants bought that of the ,virginian ,company1 preferring that before any other ,iron of what ,country soever4 ,illustration3 ,a conjectural sketch1 after ,sidney ,king1 of an earthen furnace for smelting iron4 ,furnaces such as this were used in ,england early in the seventeenth century1 and similar ones may have been used at ,jamestown4 ,in further pursuit of its determination to set up an iron industry in ,virginia1 the ,london ,company advertised for blacksmiths1 bellows makers1 edgetool makers1 cutlers1 armorers1 gunsmiths1 iron miners1 iron refiners1 iron founders1 hammermen1 millwrights for iron mills1 and colliers for charcoal making4 ,before the ,mayflower left old ,plymouth with its cargo of religious refugees1 more than one hundred workmen having the required skills had sailed to ,virginia1 some of them to set up a full-scale ironworks at ,falling ,creek1 about sixty miles up the ,james ,river from ,jamestown4 ,how much iron was actually produced at the ,falling ,creek furnace and forge1 whether largely pig iron1 sow iron1 or wrought iron1 and whether consumed in the colony1 shipped to ,england1 or some of both1 must remain matters of conjecture4 ,a series of troubles plagued the project1 but by #afai the blast furnace1 finery1 forge1 and chafery were reported to be in some good forwardnesse1 and a proofe is sent of ,iron made there4 ,two years later a new manager was sent over1 and he promised to finish the ,works have plentiful provision of ,iron 444 by next ,easter4 ,the forecast was fateful4 ,easter in #afbb fell on ,march #bd4 ,but on the morning of ,good ,friday1 ,march #bb1 the ,indians of ,virginia fell on every ,english settlement along the ,james ,river1 massacring more than #cej colonists1 including #bg at ,falling ,creek4 ,the redskins not only slaughtered the entire adult complement of ironworkers1 but destroyed the buildings and supposedly heaved some of the machinery into the river nearby4 ,the exact details are understandably a little vague1 but the result was conclusive3 the iron industry in ,virginia was ended for nearly one hundred years4 ,,early ,,ironmasters ,except for bloomeries1 which could have existed in every colony1 the first successful ironworks in ,british ,america began production about #afde at ,saugus1 ,massachusetts4 7,in a bloomery operation a lump of iron ore--usually bog iron--is heated until it is semimolten1 and then is hammered on the anvil until most impurities have been forced out2 with much labor in this manner1 small quantities of excellent wrought iron can be produced47 ,the ,saugus works have been reconstructed after careful archaeological and historical research2 a sort of family resemblance is to be presumed between them and the ironworks built in ,virginia early in the eighteenth century4 ,illustration3 ,the ,hammersmith ironworks on the ,saugus ,river in ,massachusetts as they are believed to have looked in #afej4 ,along with documentary records1 extensive remains found below ground at the site--and some above--have permitted a careful rebuilding of the entire complex4 ,redrawn after an architectural rendering in the ,saugus ,museum4 ,governor ,alexander ,spotswood re-launched the iron industry in ,virginia with the financial backing of several gentlemen in the colony and in ,england1 and with the skilled labor of immigrant ironworkers from ,germany4 ,by #agah it appears that his ,tubal works1 near the confluence of the ,rapidan and ,rappahannock rivers1 were in production1 although he had not yet received the ,london government's permission even to start the project4 ,fourteen years later ,spotswood 7by then out of office7 told ,william ,byrd ,,ii of ,westover that iron mines and blast furnaces were operating at four locations in ,virginia4 ,byrd visited and described those at ,tubal1 not far from ,germanna1 at ,fredericksville1 and at ,massaponax 7now called ,new ,post7 below ,fredericksburg4 ,spotswood had an interest in the second1 and was sole proprietor of the first and third1 having bought out his original backers4 ,the fourth was at ,accokeek1 near the ,potomac1 on land belonging to ,augustine ,washington1 whose son ,george had just been born4 ,byrd1 who did not get that far on his #agcb ,progress to the ,mines1 nevertheless confidently reported that ,matters are very well managed there1 and no expense is spared to make them profitable1 which is not the case in the works ,i have already mentioned4 ,this judgment may have been accurate for all we know1 but it seems unkind of ,byrd to throw the only bouquet to the one place he had not seen while dropping brickbats on the men who had been so hospitable and helpful to him4 ,his criticism was certainly well founded in one case4 ,the furnace at ,fredericksville 7a place no longer on the map7 had been idle the entire summer4 ,somewhat like the rider who was lost for want of a horseshoe nail1 here the blast furnace could not operate even though ore1 limestone1 charcoal1 waterpower1 and skilled labor were all available4 ,the missing nail in this case was corn4 ,there was not enough to feed the oxen that hauled the carts that carried the ore from mine to furnace and the sows from furnace to dockside on the ,rappahannock some twenty-four miles away4 ,byrd1 who had a notion to become an ironmaster himself1 was advised that a proper works required1 besides an iron deposit nearby1 a constant supply of waterpower to operate the bellows1 easy access to deep water for shipping the output to ,england1 at least two miles square of woodland to supply charcoal for a moderate furnace1 and #abj slaves to do the work1 including some to grow food for both men and beasts4 ,two bits of advice1 which he recorded as follows1 may have dissuaded him from taking the plunge3 ,if all these circumstances happily concur1 and you could procure honest colliers and firemen1 which will be difficult to do4444 ,the founders find it very hot work to tend the furnace1 especially in summer1 and are obliged to spend no small part of their earnings in strong drink to recruit their spirits4 ,spotswood's ,tubal works were producing1 in #agbc1 castiron backs and frames for ,chymmes chimneys1 ,potts1 doggs1 frying1 stewing and baking pans4 ,but even at the time of ,byrd's trip1 the output of the four ,virginia furnaces consisted almost entirely of cast iron sows and pigs that were shipped to ,england4 ,there was not a single forge operating in the whole of ,virginia1 ,spotswood told ,byrd4 ,just three years later1 however1 ,governor ,william ,gooch reported to the ,board of ,trade in ,london that one forge was producing bar iron4 ,he seemed to think this was enough to satisfy the colony's needs for iron for agriculture and ,planting1 for mending as well as making tools4 ,how badly ,gooch misjudged the local demand for wrought iron is evident in the rapid increase of forges in the following years4 ,a number sprang up near the lower ,potomac and in the ,shenandoah ,valley2 one1 called ,holt's ,forge1 was erected sometime before #agee between ,williamsburg and ,richmond at what is now ,providence ,forge4 ,its output just before the ,revolution included bar iron and such plantation supplies as plow hoes1 broad hoes1 hilling hoes1 grubbing hoes with steel edges1 nails1 and axes4 ,legally1 no colonial forge with trip hammer1 rolling mill to fashion wrought iron plate1 or slitting mill to turn the plate into bars could be built after ,parliament passed the ,iron ,act of #agej4 ,but the law seems to have had little effect1 and ,virginia smiths called for more and more bar iron to make farm tools and ironwork for wagons1 mills1 and ships4 ,the demand was so great that most bar iron produced in the colonies was consumed by local blacksmiths4 ,in #agfd1 for example1 ,colonel ,john ,tayloe1 who owned ironworks in ,king ,george ,county1 found he could sell his whole output locally4 ,robert ,carter1 the planter-entrepreneur of ,nomini ,hall and partner in the ,baltimore iron ,works1 sold large quantities of bar iron in ,williamsburg and to blacksmiths elsewhere in ,virginia4 ,by #aggj ,william ,hunter's works at ,falmouth1 said to be the largest in ,america at that time1 were turning one and one-half tons of pig iron into bars every day4 ,in #agha ,thomas ,jefferson1 who had a small interest in three blast furnaces in his home county of ,albermarle and who later owned a nail making machine and sold its output1 counted eight ironworks in ,virginia4 ,he reported that they produced about #d1djj tons of pig iron and more than #ijj tons of bar iron annually4 ,,the ,,country ,,blacksmith ,two blacksmiths and a gunsmith1 as we have seen1 came to ,jamestown with the earliest settlers1 recruited for the obvious reason that their crafts were vital to the survival of any settlement in the wilderness4 ,from the start1 both the ,london ,company and the colonial assembly tried to persuade smiths to migrate1 and1 when they reached the ,new ,world1 to practice their craft4 ,by way of encouragement1 the assembly exempted from taxes and levies artisans who engaged in their crafts and did not plant tobacco4 ,in #afeg1 in order to assure smiths1 tanners1 and weavers ample raw materials to work with1 it forbade the exportation of iron1 hides1 and wool4 ,this latter law had a checkered career3 it was repealed the next year1 reenacted two years later1 repealed as a failure after eleven years1 reenacted once more after another eleven years1 and immediately repealed by royal order as a threat to the trade and commerce of ,england4 ,through it all the supply of working smiths remained small in the colony of ,virginia1 and their charges skyrocketed4 ,the county courts were given regulatory powers by reason of the unconscionable rates1 that smiths do exact on the inhabitants of this countrey for their worke4 ,later and for another reason--the runaway inflation that accompanied the ,revolution--prices of many commodities were commonly fixed4 ,for instance1 the price of bar iron 7a consumer item for smiths7 was set by a ,williamsburg town meeting of ,july #af1 #aggi1 at #hjj shillings per ton and eightpence per pound for the present month4 ,illustration3 ,shown in this illustration from ,joseph ,moxon's ,mechanick ,exercises1 published in several eighteenth-century editions in ,london1 are the basic pieces of equipment in a blacksmith's shop--then and since4 ,actually1 the bellows connection shown is faulty3 the draft must come up through the firebed1 not blow across the top of it4 ,actually the greatest obstacles to the growth in seventeenth-century ,virginia of any large manufactory of iron and steel articles were the scarcities of cash money and1 even more simply1 of towns4 ,hartwell1 ,blair1 and ,chilton1 in their report to the ,london ,board of ,trade1 entitled ,the ,present ,state of ,virginia1 and the ,college1 described the situation in #afig3 ,for want of ,towns1 ,markets1 and ,money1 there is but little ,encouragement for ,tradesmen and ,artificers1 and therefore little ,choice of them1 and their ,labour very dear in the ,country4 ,a ,tradesman having no ,opportunity of a ,market where he can buy ,meat1 ,milk1 ,corn1 and all other things1 must either make ,corn1 keep ,cows1 and raise ,stocks himself1 or must ride about the ,country to buy ,meat and ,corn where he can find it2 and then is puzzled to find ,carriers1 ,drovers1 ,butchers1 ,salting 7for he can't buy one ,joynt or two7 and a great many other ,things1 which there would be no ,occasion for1 if there were ,towns and ,markets4 ,then a great deal of the ,tradesman's ,time being necessarily spent in going and coming to and from his ,work1 in dispers'd ,country ,plantations1 and his ,pay being generally in straggling ,parcels of ,tobacco1 the ,collection whereof costs about #aj per ,cent4 and the best of this ,pay coming but once a ,year1 so that he cannot turn his ,hand frequently with a small ,stock1 as ,tradesmen do in ,england and elsewhere1 all this occasions the ,dearth of all ,tradesmen's ,labour1 and likewise the ,discouragement1 ,scarcity1 and ,insufficiency of ,tradesmen4 ,when ,james ,blair and his co-authors wrote of the difficulties faced by artificers1 ,williamsburg was about to be made the capital of the ,virginia colony4 ,seventy years later ,williamsburg was enjoying the height of its golden age--but the soil continued less than fertile for the growth of large-scale and urban iron workshops4 ,governor ,fauquier reported to the board of ,trade in #agff3 ,there is but one manufactory of the least importance carried on in this ,colony1 which is1 the making of ,iron both in pigs and barrs1 which receives no publick encouragement1 and which when made is chiefly exported to ,great ,britain4 ,but 444 every gentleman of much property in land and negroes have some of their own negroes bred up in the trade of blacksmiths1 and make axes1 hoes1 ploughshares1 and such kind of coarse work for the use of their plantations4 ,i do not know that there is a white-smith or maker of cutlery in the ,colony4 ,fauquier's report may be discounted as a politically motivated effort to allay the home government's suspicions that the colonists were engaging too heavily in iron manufacture4 ,as a matter of fact1 there was a whitesmith 7that is1 tinsmith or worker in white metal7 by the name of ,john ,bell in ,williamsburg at the time ,fauquier wrote4 ,records of the period mention cutlers at work in ,williamsburg and elsewhere in the colony4 ,but the point of paramount significance in his report lies in the undeniable fact that agricultural blacksmithing--and ,virginia was an almost entirely agricultural colony--took place on the individual plantations4 ,in addition to ,negro slaves1 some indentured servants1 free journeymen1 and master craftsmen--the latter occasionally itinerant--could be found working at their craft on farms throughout the colony4 ,robert ,carter1 member of the council and sometime owner of a large home next to the ,governor's ,palace in ,williamsburg1 had workers on his plantations1 white and black apparently1 trained as coopers1 carpenters1 weavers1 blacksmiths1 millers1 sailors1 bricklayers1 shoemakers1 and in other skills4 ,he sold iron articles made on his ,nomini ,hall plantation to his neighbors for cash or produce--such items as hoes1 axes1 plows1 and nails4 ,although ,carter was by no means typical1 he being one of ,virginia's wealthiest and most successful farm entrepreneurs1 the example of plantation blacksmithing could be repeated many times over4 ,an instance of the availability of indentured servants is found in the #aggc advertisement of ,james ,mills in the ,virginia ,gazette3 ,just arrived the ,success's ,increase1 ,captain ,curtis1 with about eighty choice healthy ,servants1 among whom are many ,tradesmen1 viz4 ,shoemakers1 ,weavers1 ,carpenters1 ,black and ,white ,smiths1 ,tailers1 a ,sailmaker1 a ,tanner1 a ,glazier and ,painter1 a ,bricklayer1 a ,brass ,founder1 a ,turner1 an ,upholsterer1 ,surgeons1 and ,apothecaries1 ,hair ,dressers1 ,schoolmasters and ,book-,keepers1 with many ,farmers1 ,labourers1 c4 c4 ,the sale will commence at ,leeds ,town1 on ,monday the #c;d of ,january and will continue till all are sold4 ,reasonable ,credit will be allowed4444 ,tobacco will be taken in ,payment for the above4 ,john ,tait1 another planter1 wrote to ,england for a blacksmith who was accustomed to coarse ,country work1 such as hoes and axes1 to be indentured for four or five years and to receive #aj sterling per year in wages1 plus meat1 drink1 washing lodging4 ,francis ,jerdone1 a planter and merchant of ,louisa ,county1 had an indentured servant who did all of the plantation's blacksmithing and also brought in as much #g in one month of #agfg for work done for neighboring farmers4 ,the following bill of ,john ,cock indicates the kinds of work done by rural ,virginia blacksmiths and the prices they charged in #agei3 ,to making ,niles and ,shuing one whele #j #ab #f ,to making a hoop one ,staple and two ,rings and #j #e #f ,rivating the wheles by ,j4 ,l4 #agei ,january #d ,to ,shuing a pr of five foot and a half wheles and #c #j #j ,rivating them ,round ,a4 ,l4 #i ,to making #e ,staples #a ,ring and #c goosnecks #j #i #j #ab ,to making #e ,staples for the yokes bees #j #d #j ,to making #c hooks and #f ,rings #j #e #j ,to making #a large ,ring #j #a #j ,to making #h small pins ,cuting a ,chane and #j #c #f making a traces #bj ,to making #d hooks and #d ,rings #j #d #j ,to making an ox chane #j #g #f ,to ,lanthing an ox ,chane and making a ,staple and #j #b #j ,ring ,to making a ploug ,large #j #f #j ,to making an ax #j #b #j ,f4#a ,to making three axes one of my iron #j #f #f #ab ,to ,cuting a plough hoe #j #c #i #ba ,to ,laying ,eight hilling hoes #j #ab #j #bd ,to ,laying a fluck hoe of my iron #j #d #f ,to making a plough of my iron #j #aj #j ,to making #c hilling hoes #j #d #f ,to making #e hilling hoes #j #g #f #h #aj #i ,,the ,,village ,,blacksmith ,when the ,virginia ,assembly first met in #afii at ,middle ,plantation 7soon to be renamed ,williamsburg71 its members listened to speeches delivered by several students at the brand new ,college of ,william and ,mary4 ,urging that the colony's capital should be moved thence from ,jamestown1 one of the students pointed out that ,middle ,plantation already contained as many substantial housekeepers 444 as is to be found again in the whole ,county4 ,he specifically listed a smith's shop as one of several great helps and advances made towards the beginning of a town4 ,despite the young speaker's effort to make it sound impressive1 ,middle ,plantation was far from being a town by any stretch of the word4 ,but it was no accident that a mere scraggle of structures in a landscape of woods and fields included a smithy4 ,as in the first years at ,jamestown1 the presence of a blacksmith to make and mend tools was essential to the success of the settlement4 ,unfortunately1 nothing is known of the identity of that first ,williamsburg smith--not his name1 or the exact location of his shop1 or the kind of work he did4 ,illustration3 ,the ,brush-,everard ,house is one of some eighty original structures now restored to their colonial appearance in ,williamsburg4 ,john ,brush was the earliest ,williamsburg smith whose name is known today4 ,he was primarily a gunsmith and armorer1 but may have done blacksmithing too4 ,he bought two lots in the shadow of the ,governor's ,palace in #agag1 and the modest home he built there 7later enlarged by ,thomas ,everard7 still stands on ,palace ,green4 ,so far as surviving records have revealed1 he was followed by no more than fourteen individuals over the next three-quarters of a century who worked iron and steel in one or more of the smithy crafts3 blacksmith1 gunsmith1 locksmith1 cutler1 nailmaker1 and farrier4 ,only fourteen4 ,even granting the possibility that some blacksmiths never left their name or mark in a written record1 this seems remarkably few for so long a period in one of ,virginia's chief towns4 ,the small number can probably be taken as another indication that most of the colony's smiths--like eighty to ninety percent of its population--lived and worked in the country4 ,surviving advertisements1 invoices1 and inventories of ,williamsburg blacksmiths suggest that the work they did was of a somewhat different nature from that of the rural smith4 ,the following extracts from account books of ,james ,anderson and ,thomas ,pate indicate something of the urban variety3 #agga ,mr4 ,henry ,morse ,dr to ,james ,anderson ,jan #bb ,to ,cleaning #c guns #c_/ #a #i #j ,march #bb ,to ,cleaning #c ,do #c_/ #j #i #j ,august #bh ,to plating ,chair ,shafts 8 8 #c ,to mendg a spring #j #b #f #aggb ,may #be ,to a ,new tumbler pr lock #j #b #f ,june #c ,to ,mending ,bridle ,bitt #j #j #g #g ,to ,mending a ,chair #j #b #f ,july #cj ,to ,altering a spring #j #c #i ,to ,do #b bolts #j #a #c ,may #ah ,to feeding #b horses #bj days #d_/ #d #j #j ,to laing axletree pr ,chair #j #ae #j ,to #c ,tiar ,nails #a;d #j #j #d ,to pr ,clamps pr ,wheels #j #b #f ,july #e ,to #b gallons oats #j #a #c ,decmb #g ,to a key pr lock #b_/f mendg lock #a_/c #j #c #i 4444 #aggd ,jany #ah ,to a ,nutt for ,chair #j #j #g ,augt #bb ,to #h ,dog ,nails #h;d ,cleang a ,gun #b_/f #j #c #b #agge ,may #ag ,to a ,key for a lock #j #b #f ,work done for the ,capitol ,by ,james ,anderson #aggc ,may #bd ,to ,cleaning a ,stove #a #j #j ,july #bf ,to #d ,bars prs ,statue #b #d #e ,octr #c ,to #c ,bars prl ,doors #b_/f #j #g #f ,to #d ,do #e_/ 4 #bj mendg a hinge #b_/f #a #b #f #d ,to ,eight hooks #g #j #e #j #ae ,to #b ,keys prs locks #c_/i #j #g #f ,to a ,box prs do #j #a #f #aggc ,country ,dr ,apr #be ,to half a ,year ,salary as ,armourer to the ,magazine #aj #agfj ,collo ,custis ,estate to ,thos ,pate ,dr4 ,feb4 #aa ,to lenthening a ,chain and mending a ,bed pin for #j #c #j ,cart ,to altering a ,sett of ,clamps ,do #j #b #f #ai ,to ,pointing a ,plough #j #b #f #bb ,to ,making a ,screw key for the mill #j #b #f #bc ,to ,mending #b ,keys for ,locks #j #b #f #bg ,to ,making #b ,bed pins and #b ,linch pins for ,cart #j #f #c ,to making ,cleavey and ,pin ,do #j #c #i ,to making ,iron work for a ,ox yoke #j #e #j ,march #e ,to ,making a ,ox ,chain #j #aj #f ,to making ,iron ,work for a ,ox ,yoke #j #c #i #aa ,to ,altering #c ,mill ,hoops #j #c #i ,april #d ,to mending a ,lock and ,key #j #b #j #bf ,to ,altring a ,mill ,spindle #j #e #j ,may #a ,to ,pointing a fluke hoe #j #b #f #b ,to ,making #b ,wedges for the ,mill #j #b #f #g ,to ,mending a ,sane #j #a #c #cj ,to ,pointing a fluke hoe #j #b #f ,june #c ,to ,dressing #c mill ,peaks and ,lengthening a crane #j #e #j #cj ,to ,pointing a fluke hoe #j #b #f ,july #e ,to ,making a ,hoope for ,mill #aj pounds #j #g #h ,to making #b ,wedges ,do #j #b #f #aa ,to mending a ,broad ,ax #j #a #c #bd ,to mending a ,key for a ,lock #j #j #g ,novm #ag ,to making a box for a whip saw #j #c #i #agfa ,feb4 #c ,to making #b peed pins for ,small ,cart #j #b #f #i ,to ,mending a ,lock #j #a #c ,it will be noticed that ,pate made or repaired several items for the mill4 ,no doubt this was the windmill shown on the ,frenchman's ,map of #aghb as standing on or near ,custis's property to the south of town4 ,the millwright1 the wheelwright1 the coachmaker1 and the shipwright all depended heavily on the blacksmith to produce essential parts of their respective products4 ,the builder of houses1 too1 could do little without the nails and the tools that came from the local smithy4 ,however1 when the public hospital1 for persons of insane and disordered minds was built in ,williamsburg in #agga1 the removable iron gratings and padlocks to be installed at all the windows were imported from ,england4 ,for this large specialty job1 even ,james ,anderson1 the town's foremost smith1 was passed over4 ,similarly1 wrought-iron gates and balconies on the public buildings of ,williamsburg appear to have been ordered from ,england4 ,the ,capitol was to have on each ,side 444 an ,iron ,balcony upon the first ,floor1 and the assembly explicitly empowered the overseers in charge of building both the first ,capitol and the ,governor's ,palace to send to ,england for ironwork1 glass1 and other materials necessary4 ,likewise1 the elaborate gates at ,westover plantation were made for ,william ,byrd ,,ii in ,england4 ,a ,set of ,iron ,palisades and ,gates curiously wrought1 sold as part of a prize cargo in ,norfolk in #agdh1 probably came from ,france4 ,when the ,house of ,burgesses in #agfh commissioned a statue of the beloved ,governor ,botetourt1 the sculptor1 ,richard ,hayward of ,london1 was also to provide the iron railing that surrounded the base of the statue when it was set up in the portico of the ,capitol4 ,one reason for importing ironwork for these large jobs may have been that local smiths were not equipped to handle them2 more likely1 the importation was politically wise since manufacturing in the colonies was discouraged by the ,british government4 ,illustration3 ,ornamental ironwork is less characteristic of the colonial ,virginia scene than of ,charleston1 ,south ,carolina1 and ,new ,orleans4 ,nevertheless1 there are some survivals1 none finer than these two gates at ,westover plantation on the ,james ,river4 ,,tools ,,and ,,techniques ,the bills and accounts quoted a few pages back1 and others1 give ample evidence that most colonial smiths could read and write--although their spelling 7like ,george ,washington's7 might have a way of its own4 ,at least one ,williamsburg blacksmith1 ,hugh ,orr1 seems to have been quite a reader2 at his death in #agfd he left a library of about forty books4 ,but neither he nor any other colonial smith sat down to write out and illustrate a description of the work he did and how he did it4 ,this is not intended to be a how-to-do-it manual either4 ,a few pages of text and pictures can hardly substitute for the apprenticeship of as much as seven years through which a blacksmith gained mastery of his craft4 ,only the close daily supervision of an expert and years of practice will enable a smith to know when the eye of his fire is large enough--but not too large 444 when the forced draft of his bellows has made the fire hot enough--but not too hot 444 when his iron is red enough--but not too red 444 when his hammer blows fall heavily enough--but not too heavily to accomplish the particular job at hand4 ,readers unfamiliar with the processes and products of a smithy are likely to be strangers also to many of the smith's tools--which makes for something of a problem in trying to describe them4 ,for this and other reasons it seems wise to start with what may be the most familiar items today4 ,nails4 ,in the early years of the ,jamestown colony land was plentiful and nails were scarce4 ,they1 like every other object of iron--except the little chissels mentioned by ,captain ,john ,smith--had to be brought over from ,england4 ,when the soil of their tobacco fields was worn out1 planters simply took up1 cleared1 and planted new land farther west4 ,sometimes they set fire to buildings on the abandoned land in order to salvage the nails for re-use1 a practice that was forbidden by law in #afdd4 ,however1 nails were not difficult to make if one had a supply of wrought-iron rods and a few tools4 ,frontier farmers--which in eighteenth-century ,virginia meant those living one or two hundred miles to the west of ,williamsburg--sometimes spent winter days in nailmaking4 ,the fireplace served as forge1 and even the younger members of the family could wield tongs1 hammers1 and cold chisel or man the vise4 ,illustration3 ,nails and tacks of various sizes and shapes and for various special uses1 from ,diderot's encyclopedia4 ,figure #ad at the lower right is a wheel nail1 for example4 ,where there was a blacksmith1 as we have already seen1 he--or more likely his apprentice--made the nails4 ,james ,anderson estimated that eight boys could turn out twenty-five thousand nails in a week4 ,isaac ,zane1 who had an ironworks in the neighborhood of ,winchester1 owned #ag nailors tools great small and #b nailors anvills4 ,the smith probably started with iron several feet long1 about one-quarter-inch in width and the same thickness1 produced in a slitting mill4 ,his first procedure was to draw them down--and here we come to the first terminological stumbling block4 ,drawing down 7or drawing out or beating out7 is the smith's phrase for thinning and lengthening a piece of metal by heating and hammering it4 ,the contrary process of thickening--by hammering on the end of a rod--is called upsetting and is the technique used in making the head of the nail4 ,before he did that1 though1 the smith1 having drawn down the rod to the proper thickness for the nails to be made1 cut them to the desired length4 ,most likely he did this on a hardie1 which is like a chisel held with the point upward in the square hardie hole of the anvil4 ,horseshoes4 ,hugh ,jones in #agbd wrote that horseshoes were seldom used in the lower part of the country1 where there are few stones4 ,it is true that the soil of tidewater ,virginia tends to be sandy and free of stones1 so that horses could and did go unshod much of the time4 ,yet there is ample evidence--some of which we have seen in the accounts excerpted above--that blacksmiths and farriers worked in the ,williamsburg area at making and mounting horseshoes4 ,illustration3 ,the forge of ,master ,delafosse1 royal farrier1 in ,paris in the mid-eighteenth century4 ,from ,diderot's encyclopedia4 ,a smith who made1 fitted1 and applied shoes to horses1 mules1 and oxen was properly called a farrier4 ,the trade demands knowledge and skill in handling iron1 and also knowledge and skill in handling the animals being shod4 ,because of his close familiarity with these animals1 his horse sense1 so to speak1 the farrier often served the function of veterinarian too4 ,more often1 however1 it was the blacksmith who also served as farrier4 ,horseshoes were made from bar iron1 and they were normally custom made to fit not just a particular horse1 but a particular one of his feet4 ,each shoe of a set of four will differ in one or more respects--size1 shape1 or weight--from its fellows1 and each set may differ from others depending on the type of horse involved--draft1 riding1 carriage1 etc4--and the condition of surface on which the shoes are to be used--ice1 mud1 stone1 etc4 ,in addition1 special shoes can correct defects in gait1 guard against lameness1 and the like4 ,to describe how a smith made all of these possible variations is no part of this booklet4 ,suffice it to say that in the making of a horseshoe all of the blacksmith's basic tools come into use3 forge1 anvil1 tongs1 and vise4 ,some attention to each of these in turn will help to round out an understanding of the workings of the smithy4 ,forge4 ,the blacksmith's forge1 which he sometimes calls his fire1 is the most important feature of his shop4 ,it consists of a square hearth1 usually raised about two and one-half feet and made of brick1 with a bellows at the side or back to blow the fire1 a hood or hovel above to carry smoke and fumes away1 and a trough or tub of water close by in which to quench the iron or cool the tongs4 ,the fire itself1 of coal rather than charcoal1 is always small and concentrated1 a few inches across in the center of a hearth that may be four or five feet square4 ,around it lies unburnt fuel that the smith can handily bring closer when needed4 ,with his slice--a long-handled1 light-weight shovel--his fire-hook--a similarly long-handled rake--and his washer--a bunch of twigs to flick water around the fire--he carefully manages the size and depth of the fire4 ,with the bellows he regulates its intensity4 ,the blacksmith must be able to judge when his stock is hot enough1 and he does it by eye1 the right degree of heat for a particular operation being revealed by the color of the iron4 ,blood-red heat is called for when the iron is not to be reshaped but only the surface to be smoothed4 ,flame heat or white heat is necessary when the work is to be hammered to a different shape1 drawn down1 or upset4 ,sparkling heat or welding heat is used only for the delicate and highly skilled process of welding4 ,anvil4 ,this is hardly less important to the smith than the forge1 as he does practically all of his work on it4 ,the common smith's anvil1 made of cast or wrought iron1 may weigh up to about three hundred pounds4 ,it has had the same basic shape since ancient times1 each of its features being functionally tried and perfected ages ago4 ,the anvil's upper surface1 called the face1 is flat1 smooth1 so hard that a file will not cut it1 and made of cast steel welded to the wrought iron body4 ,one end of the anvil is a cone-shaped projection called the horn 7also called beak1 bick1 bickern1 or pike71 used to work curved or rounded pieces of iron such as rings1 links1 or shackles4 ,between the horn and the face of the anvil is a small square area called the table4 ,its surface is not as hard as that of the face1 and the smith places on it any work he wants to cut with a cold chisel4 ,near the other end or heel of the anvil are two holes1 one round1 called the pritchel hole1 and the other square1 called the hardie hole4 ,when the smith intends to punch a hole through a piece of metal1 he positions it over the pritchel hole so that the punch will pass into the hole rather than strike the face of the anvil4 ,the hardie hole 7also called the swage hole7 is designed to take the square shanks of a variety of special-purpose bottom tools--which make their impact on the underside of the work when the smith strikes it from above4 ,tongs4 ,iron being a metal that transmits heat readily1 the blacksmith often cannot hold the piece he is working on1 even with a gloved hand4 ,he needs tongs to do the holding1 and because of the differing shape of different objects being worked1 he needs a variety of tongs of different shapes and sizes4 ,these he ordinarily makes himself4 ,john ,brush of ,williamsburg1 for instance1 owned #g pair of ,smiths ,tongs4 ,hammers4 ,it has already been said that the smith's forge and anvil are among his essential tools4 ,so is his hammer--or rather hammers1 for he needs several of different shapes and weights1 as well as a sledge or two4 ,illustration3 ,a small selection of tools such as would be found in almost any blacksmith's shop3 fire tools1 tongs1 pincer1 hammers1 chisels1 stamps1 and stakes or hardies4 ,from ,diderot4 ,vises4 ,smiths' vises are of two types1 the large standing vise1 used to hold iron for bending1 riveting1 filing1 or polishing1 and the small or hand vise to hold work of similar size4 ,in both cases the work will have already undergone the major part of its forming on the anvil1 and the vise comes into use almost solely for finishing operations4 ,other tools that have particular uses may be no less important to the smith when he has occasion to use them4 ,among them may be mentioned drills1 swages1 swage blocks1 hardies1 stakes1 punches1 cold chisels1 files1 screw plates1 flatter1 fuller1 header1 and mandrel4 ,it is recommended to the reader who wants to know the nature and uses of these and other tools in a smithy that he become an apprentice to the nearest blacksmith2 there is no better way to learn4 ,certainly no one can learn to anneal1 braze1 case-harden1 temper1 lay1 and weld iron just by reading about it4 ,but we can at least offer some definitions3 ,annealing is the process of softening steel so that it can be worked by cutting tools4 ,it is done by heating the piece in the fire to blood-red heat1 then allowing it to cool slowly4 ,brazing joins together two or more pieces of metal by the use of a brass solder1 called spelter4 ,it is used when the pieces to be joined are too thin to be welded4 ,case hardening is the process of hardening the outer surfaces of iron or steel1 while leaving the core soft and therefore tougher4 ,according to ,joseph ,moxon's ,mechanick ,exercises 7third edition published in ,london in #agjc7 it was to be accomplished as follows3 ,cover the iron all over with a cement made of powdered cow horn or hoof1 coarse sea salt1 stale urine or white wine vinegar1 and clay1 with more clay added to enclose the whole2 when the clay has dried hard1 put the whole lump in the fire and bring it to blood-red heat1 no more2 then take the iron out and quench it4 ,tempering is the opposite of annealing1 in that it slightly softens and toughens iron or steel4 ,it is accomplished by bringing the object to the proper heat--which may differ according to the 444 ,laying was one of the most frequent operations performed by colonial smiths4 ,such implements as axes1 hoes1 and plows usually had wooden handles and wrought-iron heads1 with a strip of steel welded on to make the cutting edge or face4 ,when the last become worn1 the process of replacing it was called laying or steeling4 ,welding two pieces of iron is at the same time very simple in theory and very difficult in fact4 ,at the proper heat the two pieces placed firmly face to face will--if the faces are clean--stick together without further ado4 ,but accomplishing this feat requires great skill with the fire and great quickness with the hammer so that scale will not form on the surfaces to be welded4 ,normally the weld is hammered together on the anvil to refine the grain of the metal as it cools4 ,illustration3 ,another farrier's shop1 no doubt drawn on the spot with tools and equipment just as they were seen by the artist4 ,from ,diderot4 ,,the ,,essential ,,craft ,james ,anderson was described earlier in these pages as ,williamsburg's foremost blacksmith during the years when his shop occupied a lot on ,francis ,street4 ,several of his ledger books are still in existence1 some of them treasured possessions of ,colonial ,williamsburg4 ,among endless entries covering the laying of axes1 hoes1 plows1 and colters1 appear others that show the less routine aspects of ,anderson's daily work3 mending a poker2 making a nut for a bolt of a chair 7probably a riding chair72 dressing two mill picks2 mending a lock2 altering #dj window hooks2 making a hasp and staple for a henhouse2 providing handle1 wedges1 and ring for a scythe2 fixing a new end to an oyster clamp2 putting a handle on a teakittle2 forging a well chain2 making a strike tier1 i4e41 strakes for wagon wheel and nails to attach them2 spindle for a wheel2 prong for a dung fork2 putting a hoop on a barrel2 mending a coffee mill2 #i fronts and a rib for a griddle2 #ej spikes2 a pair of flatirons2 mending and installing locks1 keys1 window bars1 leg irons1 and chains for the lunatick hospital2 lengthening the bearer and adding a new middle foot to an andiron2 a ,sett of ,iron for a dressing table2 four breast plate buckles 7for a harness72 drilling a gun2 mending an umbrella2 triming a horse feet2 making1 mending1 putting on1 and taking off leg irons and hand cuffs for the jail4 ,clearly everyone in town had to patronize the blacksmith sooner or later4 ,he was1 in a very real sense1 a craftsman for all seasons4 ,,the ,,blacksmiths ,,of ,,williamsburg ,this list includes only the men who were primarily blacksmiths or who clearly did blacksmithing along with their work in other iron crafts4 ,the dates designate the years when they are known to have been in ,williamsburg4 ,james ,anderson1 #agfb-agih4 ,born in ,gloucester ,county in #agdj4 ,public armorer in ,williamsburg from #agff1 and supplier of arms to the ,revolutionary forces of ,virginia4 ,his forge probably occupied the lot on ,francis ,street in ,williamsburg next to the ,barraud ,house4 ,he employed a number of journeymen gunsmiths1 blacksmiths1 and nailers1 and at one time had as many as nine apprentices4 ,he and his shops were moved to ,richmond along with other government agencies when that city became the seat of government in #aghj2 in #agic he turned his ,richmond shop over to his son and moved back to ,williamsburg4 ,william ,ashburn1 #aggd4 ,advertised in ,april of that year that he had opened shop near the ,capitol in ,williamsburg4 ,may have been in town three years earlier1 but little else is known of him4 ,john ,bell1 #agec-aggf4 ,called himself both whitesmith and blacksmith4 ,served as public armorer from #agfc to #agff1 when he moved to ,portsmouth4 ,james ,bird1 #agdj-ageh4 ,established his shop in the ,market ,square on land leased from the trustees of the city of ,williamsburg4 ,was lacking both as master and as businessman3 an apprentice sued in court and obtained release from his indenture2 pleading that the blacksmith misused him1 and after his creditors foreclosed the mortgage on his property1 ,bird departed town in low ,circumstances4 ,robert ,bond1 #agfa-aghc4 ,learned blacksmithing as an apprentice in ,yorktown4 ,bought large quantities of bar iron from ,robert ,carter4 ,worked for the state during the ,revolution and got caught in a bureaucratic vise3 when the ,british destroyed his bellows he could not1 despite an order from the commissioner of war1 obtain any ,lether ,with out the ,money and i am in tylerly idle theay wont ,let ,me ,draw any ,provisions because i ant at ,work and i ,cant ,doe anything ,with out my ,bellus4 ,john ,brush1 #agag-agbf4 ,primarily a gunsmith2 may also have engaged in the blacksmith's trade4 ,thought to have been a protg of ,governor ,spotswood because he did work and reparations about the ,governors ,house1 and built his home on the ,palace ,green nearby4 ,was keeper of the public arms and those of the governor2 in #agbc petitioned the legislature 7in vain7 for an allowance for his misfortune in being blown up and hurt in firing the ,guns on his ,majtys ,birthday4 ,thomas ,cowles1 #aggb-agge4 ,he was a patient of ,dr4 ,john ,m4 ,galt1 bought bar iron from ,robert ,carter1 and repaired the arms of ,capt4 ,lynes ,compy of ,minute ,men4 ,nothing else is known of him4 ,john ,draper1 #agfi-aghi4 ,blacksmith1 farrier1 and veterinary1 whose shop was on ,duke of ,gloucester ,street and who lived on the corner of ,francis and ,waller streets where the ,old ,play ,house lately stood4 ,during the ,revolution he made guns1 rented out riding chairs1 rode express1 repaired arms1 and supplied nails and shot4 ,james1 ,david1 and ,william ,geddy1 #agcf-;about #aghj4 ,james ,geddy1 gunsmith1 father of ,david and ,william 7also of ,james ,geddy1 ,jr41 the silversmith71 established his shop in ,williamsburg sometime before #agcf2 he died in #agdd4 ,he and two of his sons did cutlery work1 brass casting1 and iron founding as well as gunsmithing2 the sons also purveyed rupture bands and a vermifuge for horses1 and offered to cure the most inveterate ,pole-evils and ,fistulas 444 and all ,diseases incident to ,horses4 ,during the ,revolution ,william was paid for repairing arms and casting ball2 he died in #aghd4 ,john ,moody1 #aggf-aggi4 ,smith and farrier1 from ,philadelphia by way of ,norfolk1 advertised his shop near the church in #aggf4 ,was paid on several occasions for shoeing horses1 but little more is known of him before his death in #aggi4 ,hugh ,orr1 #agch-agfd4 ,captain ,orr called himself both blacksmith and hammer man1 and settled in ,williamsburg by #agch4 ,his house and smithy were on ,duke of ,gloucester ,street4 ,he may have acted as farrier1 and either he or a slave trained to do so performed phlebotomy--bleeding4 ,he served as armorer for the colony for three years and may have been an officer in the ,williamsburg militia4 ,he is buried in ,bruton churchyard4 ,thomas ,pate1 #agfj-ahad4 ,did blacksmith work for ,john ,custis and ,lord ,botetourt among others1 and repaired arms for ,virginia troops during the ,revolution4 ,the location of his shop is not known1 but his purchase of more than #c1jjj pounds of bar iron from ,robert ,carter in #aggc alone indicates a lively trade4 ,william ,willis 7or ,willess71 #agfh-aggj4 ,came from ,birmingham and opened his gunsmith and blacksmith shop near the playhouse and below the ,capitol1 but soon moved to ,norfolk4 ,suggestions for ,further ,reading ,alex ,w4 ,bealer1 ,the ,art of ,blacksmithing4 rev4 ed4 ,new ,york1 ,funk and ,wagnalls1 #aigf4 ,garry ,hogg1 ,hammer ,tongs3 ,blacksmithery ,down the ,ages4 ,london1 ,hutchinson ,co41 #aifd4 ,j4 ,g4 ,holmstrom1 ,modern ,blacksmithing and ,horseshoeing4 ,chicago1 ,f4 ,j4 ,drake ,co41 #aida4 ,john ,jernberg1 ,forging3 ,manual of ,practical ,instruction in ,hand ,forging of ,wrought ,iron4444 ,chicago1 ,american ,technical ,society1 #aiag4 ,william ,allyn ,richards1 ,forging of ,iron and ,steel4 ,new ,york1 ,d4 ,van ,nostrand ,co41 #aiae4 ,f4 ,w4 ,robins1 ,the ,smith3 ,the ,traditions and ,lore of an ,ancient ,craft4 ,london1 ,rider and ,co41 #aiec4 ,h4 ,r4 ,bradley ,smith1 ,blacksmiths' and ,farriers' ,tools at ,shelburne ,museum3 ,a ,history of ,their ,development from ,forge to ,factory4 ,shelburne1 ,vt41 ,shelburne ,museum1 #aiff4 ,albert ,h4 ,sonn1 ,early ,american ,wrought ,iron4 ,new ,york1 ,charles ,scribner's ,sons1 #aibh4 ,aldren ,a4 ,watson1 ,the ,village ,blacksmith4 ,new ,york1 ,thomas ,y4 ,crowell ,co41 #aifh4 ,the ,blacksmith in ,eighteenth-,century ,williamsburg1 first published in #aiga1 is based largely on an unpublished monograph by ,harold ,b4 ,gill1 ,jr41 of the ,colonial ,williamsburg research staff4 ,it has been prepared with the assistance of ,thomas ,k4 ,ford1 editor until #aigf1 ,colonial ,williamsburg ,department of ,publications4 ,transcriber's ,notes --,retained publication information from the printed edition3 this e,book is public-domain in the country of publication4 --,silently corrected a few palpable typos4 --,in the text versions only1 text in italics is delimited by underscores4 --,marked a lacuna in the original printed edition with 4444