blacksmiths

1954: Finding Fort William Henry’s Blacksmith Shop

February 2, 2026 by Joseph W. Zarzynski Leave a Comment

Blacksmiths were integral personnel at frontier fortifications in North America during the 18th century. These iron smithies not only forged military items like swords, knives, musket barrels, and other lethal objects, they likewise crafted kettles, plates, ax heads, hammers, shovels, nails, and other metal tools.

So, it was not surprising in 1954, that during excavations in the Village of Lake George at Fort William Henry Museum, that a blacksmith “shop” was unearthed by archaeologist Stanley M. Gifford’s diggers. [Read more…] about 1954: Finding Fort William Henry’s Blacksmith Shop

Staten Island Shipyards: Some History

June 11, 2025 by Guest Contributor 2 Comments

The scarcity of timber following the American Revolution somewhat diminished the Staten Island shipbuilding trade. After the war, the U.S. shipbuilding industry thrived because of low-cost construction made possible by cheap timber.

The growth of the fishing and oystering industries following the War of 1812, and later the expansion of recreational boating industries, brought a revival in wooden boat/ship construction and repair. [Read more…] about Staten Island Shipyards: Some History

The Art of Blacksmithing is Alive at Round Lake Forge

September 16, 2024 by Wendy Hobday Haugh Leave a Comment

For centuries, the welcomed sound of a blacksmith’s hammer rang out in communities large and small where people relied on these skilled iron-workers for everything from cookware, cutlery, carpentry tools, and farming equipment to horseshoes, locks, nails and much more.

Community blacksmiths are a rarity today, but Saratoga County is fortunate to have one of its very own. Colin Roy, proprietor of Round Lake Forge in Charlton, spends his days doing what he loves, a mix of blacksmithing, metal fabrication, and architectural design. [Read more…] about The Art of Blacksmithing is Alive at Round Lake Forge

American Sporting Prints: 19th Century Horses & Horsemen

May 17, 2022 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

The American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine, as early as 1829, had pictures of noted horses, engraved by well-known steel-gravers from paintings by Alvan Fisher [1792-1863] and J. Cone [possibly J. Cone Ruitiar]. A few years later the New York Spirit of the Times was issuing engravings from paintings principally by Edward Troye [1808-1874].

It all amounts to a gallery of horse notables: Fashion, Glencoe, Lightning, Shark, Leviathan, Monarch, and down the list. There are interesting side-lights on the costume of the boys holding their equine charges, one with an Eton jacket and a cap much like that worn by the American troops during the Mexican War, another brave in Hessian boots and epaulets. It is, however, principally the quicker lithographic process that pictured His Majesty the Horse. [Read more…] about American Sporting Prints: 19th Century Horses & Horsemen

1840s Troy: Blacksmith Dan, John Morrissey & Friends

January 6, 2022 by John Warren 3 Comments

Throughout the 19th century the blacksmith’s shop was a central part of American life. Even the smallest forge was kept busy mending and making the variety of tools and implements for home and garden, for workshop and industry, and tack and shoes for mules, horses and oxen. Blacksmiths were critical to transportation, manufacturing and home life. Like today’s auto garage, nearly every substantial crossroads had a blacksmith’s shop.

Better shops included the blacksmith, a fireman, a helper, and sometimes a furrier. In 1850 there were more than 150 blacksmiths in Troy, NY, a city of about 30,000 people, including one woman, Canadian Cyrilla Turcott. About half of these smithies were born in Ireland. More blacksmiths of all skill levels could be found in the city’s wagon, carriage and wheelwright shops, or employed in the city’s booming iron industry. [Read more…] about 1840s Troy: Blacksmith Dan, John Morrissey & Friends

The Burden Iron Works of Troy: A Short History

September 10, 2020 by Suzanne Spellen 4 Comments

H. Burden & Sons, also known as the Burden Iron Works, was a marvel of nineteenth century industrial ingenuity. From its foundries and assembly lines in South Troy, the company produced horseshoes that shod the Union Army, railroad spikes for tracks that crossed the continental United States, and rivets, for, well, just about everything.

The inventor of the Ferris Wheel, George Washington Gale Ferris Jr., was an 1881 graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). He was no doubt influenced by one of Troy’s most impressive industrial monuments – the Burden Water Wheel. [Read more…] about The Burden Iron Works of Troy: A Short History

Bout of the Century: Heenan and Sayers

February 25, 2020 by Jaap Harskamp Leave a Comment

Britain and the US share a passion for boxing. Over time, it has been both mass entertainment and highbrow delight for writers from Byron to Norman Mailer, or artists from Cruikshanks to Bellows. In 1949, Kirk Douglas made his name as Midge Kelly in Champion. The greatest sporting event of the nineteenth century was a bout between a London bricklayer and a New York blacksmith. Both were of Irish descent. They became sporting super stars. [Read more…] about Bout of the Century: Heenan and Sayers

The Babbie Rural and Farm Learning Museum

July 9, 2016 by Lawrence P. Gooley Leave a Comment

In the northeast corner of New York State, the first weekend in June features Museum Days, during which 16 facilities in Clinton County offer free admission. We were among many who appeared as special guests on both days, offering our books for sale and visiting with attendees, which meant talking a lot about “the good old days.” From that experience, I can assure everyone that a trip to the Babbie Rural & Farm Learning Museum in Peru, where we spent Saturday, is a great idea from several perspectives.

As a museum, it’s a real pleasure, and for children and adults alike, it’s fun and entertaining. But it occurred to me that it’s also a priceless gift to people in their sixties or older, and to the offspring of those folks who have heard stories about childhood chores, tools of yesteryear, and appliances that preceded modern devices. [Read more…] about The Babbie Rural and Farm Learning Museum

blacksmiths

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