An anvil: Courtesy the Fort Bend County Museum AssociationA blacksmith's tools: from l to r: tongs, swage, hardy, hammer; Courtesy the Fort Bend County Museum AssociationIn early Texas, blacksmiths were responsible for making hardware and repairing tools. Farmers and ranchers undertook these tasks for themselves before a forge was opened in a nearby town and continued to maintain a forge after that for quick onsite repairs. Blacksmiths commonly worked with iron or steel. These metals were heated in a forge, often made of brick, which would make the metal malleable. The blacksmith could gauge the temperature and thus the elasticity of the metal by its color. Color ranged from black to red to orange to yellow. Forges were coal fired and air was blown through them from the bottom up with a bellows to super heat the fire.

Metal bars, scraps or other pieces were heated in the forge and then beaten on an anvil into a desired shape. Anvils were large iron pieces flat on top with square edges. At one end, there was a short drop to a horn which was used to bend metal into round shapes. The short drop or block was used when working with cold chisels. There were also two holes, one square and one round on the opposite end of the flat top that were used to hold hardies, swages or chisels, which were all used to shape or cut the metal.

The blacksmith used one of his hammers to beat the metal bar into shape on the anvil. He worked at a small portion of the bar, going slowly, heating only the sections being smithed. Other portions of the bar could be cooled by dipping them into a bucket or barrel of water. The bar was constantly either cooled or reheated because the blacksmith didn’t want the bar getting too hot or too cold. If the metal bar got too hot it would burn and if it got too cold it would get brittle and be more prone to cracking.

Eventually, the blacksmith completed work forming his tool or piece of hardware. He then employed several techniques to strengthen the iron or apply a finish to it that included tempering, annealing, and blacking just to name a few.

Farmers used their forges to repair tools and wagons, sharpen plow points, create horseshoes, and make any tools needed. Blacksmiths also made nails, hinges, drawer pulls, gate hardware, any tool, axes, barrel hoops, metal tires for wheels and more.

By 1890, tools and hardware were being produced in factories, ordered from catalogs, and shipped all over the country on the railroad. This forced most blacksmiths to abandon their efforts at manufacture of items and focus on repair work and other business avenues, such as vehicle sales and plumbing. However, the art of blacksmithing did not die. Many people still practice blacksmithing. One place to see a blacksmith today is at the George Ranch Historical Park where a 1911 blacksmith shop is operated.