O'connell

Hey Swedefiddle, that sounds pretty weird. Even if it can't be used, it still should have been stood up. The base has a huge crack, just below where the hammer strikes. There hasn't been a blacksmith here in a long time that takes their job more seriously than I do. I am always trying to improve the functionality and image of the shop and my boss is working on a few projects also. One is a workshop where members of the public can pay for a basic lesson and do a little work with us. Heelaru, a visit to Colonial Williamsburg is a dream of mine also. A few more recent pictures. The drill is now mounted on the wall instead of the post in the center of the shop. Cleaned up a lot of the mess and old scrap metal.

Horses! The third picture is the view from behind the shop, looking out at the main street.

Yeah, I'm not much of a photographer Frosty. Thanks for the tips. Hello Heelerau and Thomas. The shop is in Barkerville, an old gold rush town built in the early 1860's, in the Cariboo Mountains. It was one of the biggest gold strikes in the world. The entire town and area was made into a museum in 1958. We get 50 to 60 thousand visitors each summer. I have most of my things marked, but I'm not worried about losing anything. Barkerville gives my boss and I a lot freedom running the shop and don't interfere much. They pay for the coal ( the good stuff ) and the steel. Or I guess the money we bring in pays for it. I get a commission on the things I sell also.

A few pictures of my 106 lb Peter Wright.

This is my view all day from inside the shop. There are usually horses and a wagon tied up in front of the government office across the street. Also, just above the pillar in the center of the doorway is a swallow nest with chicks in it. I recently put the swage back on it's proper block that was occupied by the anvil. I then dug an 18 inch hole to insert a log into the floor for the anvil. Made four large u nails? to hold it down. When I'm hitting something really hard I've had visitors tell me they can feel the hammer strikes in their feet. Mission accomplished.

I purchased this anvil from a blacksmith friend who I've been learning from. 100 bucks. He also sold me a nice 106lb Peter Wright last summer. I'll get a picture of it soon.

I'm going to post pictures here every so often, from the shop I work at. These pictures are a little dark because the big front doors were closed.

Here's a dark picture of the Little Giant in it's new resting place. This is just after I closed for the day.

Thanks for the welcome Soupyjones. It's amazing how many visitors I meet in Barkerville that are into or are getting into blacksmithing. All different ages too. A lot from BC. I'm looking forward to starting on my forge this summer. I have small and medium sized hand blowers, but will build a big set of bellows eventually. I love the rhythmic motion of them. Also, I can't figure out how to get rid of the double picture post at the start of this thread. Sorry for that folks. It has been taken care of

Thanks swedefiddle. I am building my own forge with rock and brick. A smith friend of mine brought me a large flat piece of rock for the top. He even cut it into a square for me. What a guy. The Little Giant hammer was upright when I started working here, but it was sunken into the ground a good 6 inches. I got it out of the dirt and my boss helped me move it closer to the front of the shop, and on wooden 4x4's set in the ground. I am putting the foot pedal and clutch rod back on, and then hopefully a shaft and pully coming out through the wall from the back room, with a belt hooked up to the hammer. Just for show, but it will look great. The hammer can no longer be used due to a huge crack. I've done a few things to get the shop looking right. I put the swage back on it's square block that the anvil was on. Put a large log down in the ground for the anvil. I raised it up an inch. I made some u-nails to hold the anvil down solidly. Just making everything more efficient and easier on my body. A couple more pics from last season. The second one was taken by Mia Cirotto and is my favorite.

These pics were taken by Dean Dunson. A photographer from Marcola, Oregon. He was nice enough to email these to me.

Hello smiths, I have been learning a lot from this site so I figured I should join and contribute. I have always been into metal working but just recently (spring 2015) started smithing in Barkerville. It's basically a small gold rush town turned into a museum. Worked part time last year and full time this season, so I am getting lots of practice now. I have had some instruction from three smiths that I know, but want to learn as much as I can. I have fallen in love with blacksmithing and am building my own 1800's shop on my property here in Wells. I have most of what I need except a forge. I have included a few pics from last summer.