The Blacksmith: Ironworker and Farrier

Illustrated throughout, this history-plus-craft book describes the work, tools, and technique of the blacksmith--and how to set up a blacksmith shop yourself. Filled with absorbing information, The Blacksmith: Ironworker and Farrier pays fine tribute to the skill and ingenuity of this versatile nineteenth-century American craftsman. The roles of the blacksmith as hardware maker, farrier, and village handyman are vividly portrayed in the lively text and exceptional illustrations. Methods for fullering, upsetting, and welding wrought iron are clearly explained, as well as the construction of latches, ice tongs, chains, and a wealth of iron fittings. Aldren Watson's chapters include "Wrought Iron: Its Properties and Manufacture," "The Blacksmith Shop and Forge Fire," "Working at the Forge," "Hardware and Harness," "Shoeing a Horse," "Wagons, Buggies, and Sleds," and "The Blacksmith in His World." For those who would like a forge and bellows of their own, there are suggestions for laying out a blacksmith shop and constructing a leather bellows and forge. Watson's book is an important record and a valuable source for anyone interested in this part of American industry.