Blacksmithing in Appalachia
As settlers began to move West, out of a necessity for survival, settlers often had to learn the trade of blacksmithing. They would use their own anvil and forge to make and repair tools and household items. Blacksmithing was essential and the trade touched virtually every aspect of pioneer life in Appalachia.
Click on the images below to learn more about the most common tools that a blacksmith utilized.
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Forging Traditions: The Art and Legacy of Appalachian Blacksmithing
As settlers moved to Western North Carolina, large iron deposits were discovered in the mountains. Many settlers soon learned that the trade of blacksmithing was vital for the survival of their communities. Many settlers would often use their own anvil and forge to make shoes for mules, oxen and horses; farming tools like plows, rakes, and hoes; guns and traps for hunters; and general use items like axes, hammers, nails, pots, pans, and utensils. Not only did the blacksmith trade impact everyday life, but the ability for settlers to make weapons out of iron gave settlers a technological advantage over sometimes hostile neighbors.
“At that time the blacksmith played a vital role in his community and was generally accorded his due respect. There is hardly a facet of life his work did not touch upon; indeed without his skills, the prevailing life-style would have been extremely primitive. Most of the items a blacksmith made and repaired were either tools or other work-related items, such as harness fittings and ox yokes. In a culture where everyone, even children, had to work just to get by, it’s not hard to understand how important the blacksmith was.”
Foxfire 5, p. 108
During the rise of the Industrial Revolution, trains, automobiles, and the mastery of steel production truly changed everything. Including the aspect of creating these new vehicles, which consisted of welding pieces of metal together. Blacksmiths could do these jobs by using a process known as forge welding, in which they heated two pieces of steel to 2,000º F or above, layered them on the anvil and smashed them together with a hammer, but this was an extremely time consuming process. Over time, the blacksmith’s hammer, anvil, and chisel started to be replaced by welding guns, electric grinders, and other inventions designed to meet the growing need for mass production. Welders are essentially a modernized version of what used to be a single component of a blacksmith’s employment. That was forge welding in action. Without the innovation and skills used by blacksmiths in the past, we would not have welding today.
A special thank you to Brooke Hensley, the designer behind this webpage. A native of Yancey County and graduate of Mountain Heritage High School, Brooke is currently pursuing a major in Political Science and a minor in History at East Tennessee State University. As an intern at the Center for Pioneer Life, she researched the history of blacksmithing in the Appalachian region and how this trade impacted the lives of these pioneers.