“Hot metal!” was the phrase of the day, a safety mantra to keep people out of harm’s way!
We started our IL adventure at the Harriton House by learning a bit about the history of the grounds, which date to the early 1700s. We then were shown some ideas for what we could make. For example, we were shown easy latches, locks, keys, and other mechanisms that we could make as beginners.
Bruce, the resident blacksmith, spoke with us at length about the history of not only the grounds we were working on, but also the people who had settled the area.
After that we toured the historical house and admired the metal components that existed within. For example, the pots, pans, and other cookware had all been made in similar ways to the things we would make later that day.
At long last, it was time to light the forge! We were instructed in basic forging techniques such as drawing out and bending the metal. We then all took our turn getting a feel for shaping the small pieces of metal that were given to us for practice. We spent the next hour or two playing around, turning our pieces into whatever we desired. On Monday, we will begin work on our ideas.