Last updated: July 1, 2024
Place
Blacksmith's Shop
NPS Photo
Quick Facts
Amenities
2 listed
Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Tactile Exhibit
It appears several shops were operating adjacent to each other and that the location of shops may have changed during the Bent period. The writing and drawings of Thomas Farnham and William Boggs, based on fort scenes in 1839 and 1844, mention or show a blacksmith shop along the north wall; the George Bent notes with an accompanying map by Grinnell place a smithy shop along "...the back of the fort...." On the basis of archeology, the latter area especially appears as a strong candidate for the location of a blacksmith shop; numerous pieces of iron hardware were unearthed, as was a severely burned slice of earth, possibly the locus of a small forge. No evidence of a fireplace was uncovered (further suggesting a blacksmith shop); a remnant of post, perhaps for a gate; the remains of wood pavement into the alley, and the lack of a substantial south wall all support George Bent's recollections.
One thing is certain, noises coming from work in this room filled the air! Magoffin mentioned "The clang of the blacksmith's hammer was constant", while James Abert called it "incessant." It is likely that activities in this room included horseshoeing and the manufacture or repair of tools, metal trade goods, and kitchen hardware. According to Grinnell, most of the fort's "...mechanics were Americans, with a few Frenchmen." Their workshops were typically "...a cluttered-up place where at one time the prevailing odor might be of wood smoke, at another time...the smell of the half-rotted hoof...." Add to this a thick cloud of coalsmoke and one better understands the many health hazards that accompanied this occupation!
This room is furnished with a variety of blacksmithing and wheelwright tools. Bent & St. Vrain ordered a 123 pound iron anvil in 1840; they also purchased 1 bellows for $20.00. The list of today's equipment includes a stack of bar iron, a slack tub, tempering bath, swage block, mandrills, hammers and tongs, punches and chisels, a vice, and numerous files.
One thing is certain, noises coming from work in this room filled the air! Magoffin mentioned "The clang of the blacksmith's hammer was constant", while James Abert called it "incessant." It is likely that activities in this room included horseshoeing and the manufacture or repair of tools, metal trade goods, and kitchen hardware. According to Grinnell, most of the fort's "...mechanics were Americans, with a few Frenchmen." Their workshops were typically "...a cluttered-up place where at one time the prevailing odor might be of wood smoke, at another time...the smell of the half-rotted hoof...." Add to this a thick cloud of coalsmoke and one better understands the many health hazards that accompanied this occupation!
This room is furnished with a variety of blacksmithing and wheelwright tools. Bent & St. Vrain ordered a 123 pound iron anvil in 1840; they also purchased 1 bellows for $20.00. The list of today's equipment includes a stack of bar iron, a slack tub, tempering bath, swage block, mandrills, hammers and tongs, punches and chisels, a vice, and numerous files.