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[Dutchmancreek]

I've been away for some time, busy with other interests, selling the farm, and moving. I'm not working in the forge right now but decided to get back on the forum.

I recently re-located from Southern Illinois to West Virginia. I moved the whole shop along with everything else. I'm probably the only one who ever had coal shipped to West Virginia (hey, it was good coal and I wasn't going to leave it behind).

The shop equipment is stored in the basement, since I don't have a shop built yet....that'll have to wait until next spring. Luckily the basement has a "walk out" door at ground level on the back side of the house so the movers could get everything in there. They had never moved a coal forge, 300# and 130# anvils, all the tooling, vises, stock, etc......kinda wore them out, with all the rest of the household stuff.

I'm up north, just east of Morgantown, WV.......anyone else up this way?

[ThomasPowers]

Moves are always fun when you are a smith, I moved about a ton of old rusty wrought iron plate scrap from OH to NM. My shop move wasn't covered by the relocation package and took more than a full flat bed Semi-trailer *after* I gave away tons of stuff. Then it had to sit in the desert on pallets until a shop got built---and I found that it had sat out in the RAIN on pallets in OH---I was already here when it moved.

Hope I never have to move again---I bought a second powerhammer and somehow the amount of stuff I have seems to not have decreased!

[Steve Sells]

I know of at least one guy north of Charlotte

[freeman]

I'm not exactly in your neck of the woods but I drive through Morgantown at least six times a year during summer on my way up to the New River Gorge. That's beautiful country up there.

[Glenn]

There are several blacksmiths in northern WV. ABA meetings in your area include:
Fairmont, WV
ABA/PAABA Hammer-In at Rice's Landing, PA (near Waynesburg).
Conference at Cedar Lakes Park (Ripley, WV)
Hammer-In at Arthurdale, WV

You may want to look for the old coking furnaces between Morgantown and Kingwood. They are on the edge of the road and can be seen from the road. The covered bridge at Philippi WV has many blacksmith made parts. There is a historic fort (Fort Salem?) just outside Clarksburg that may be a contact.

You are only an hour or so south of Pittsburgh Pa, so look up the Pa blacksmithing group.

[Dutchmancreek]

Thanks guys.....yes, it is beautiful up here, although when anyone hears where I live they always ask "have you got four wheel drive" (I do). We bought the place for the view (among other things) so we're up quite a way above the elevation of Morgantown itself, up by Cooper's Rock. I'm told the winter is noticeable.

Freeman....the New River Gorge is really something. We considered moving right there close to the bridge but decided it was a little too far from what we wanted to do. We're right close to the Cheat River and might try a canoe/raft trip next summer.

[freeman]

My alter-ego is a white water kayaker. If you're looking at doing a rafting trip in the Gorge area get your money's worth and run the Gauley, just, whatever you do stay in the raft!