The Art and Science of Blacksmithing
“Hot iron moving!” Teddy shouted, as the rest of the blacksmiths echoed back in response, “hot iron moving!” He walked briskly but carefully from the forge to place the J-hook he was working on in a clamp. The glowing red iron yielded under the force of his tools, until he had twisted the hook into the shape he wanted.
If you enter the blacksmith shop at Falling Creek, you’ll be met with loud and exciting sounds, along with the distinctive smell of burning coal. Any place where you can work with fire and hammers is enticing to boys, so you can imagine how the blacksmith shop is always popular. Teddy and his twin brother Gibs were both working at the shop together on different projects. Since they were sharing a forge, they had to communicate when to open and close the vent, controlling how much air gets to the coals and how hot the flames get.
Blacksmithing is an art that most boys aren’t able to do at home. Once they start learning the basics here at camp, boys are eager to set goals for themselves and keep improving their craft. Teddy’s goal is to make an “S-Hook” by the end of the session. “I have a long term goal of working up to making a blade,” said Gibs.
Walker had the same goal, and after just turning 10 this year, it was his first summer being able to forge. His favorite part is being able to create things on his own. “It’s crazy that a ten year old can make something like this himself,” he said as he worked on a J-hook.
A diagram on the wall of the shop showed the colors of heated iron, from black (up to 1000 degrees!), to red (forging temperature), to white (welding temperature). It was Crawford’s first time at blacksmithing, and while he worked on making an arrowhead, Mikey coached him through the process. “When the metal heats up to that red color on the diagram, that’s when you know it’s ready,” he said. If iron is too cool, it won’t be pliable enough to forge. If it gets too hot though, it could melt away. The boys have to learn the timing, as well as the art form.
While blacksmithing is an art, it is also just as much a science. You need both the creativity to make beautiful things, and the technical knowledge of how to manipulate the metal through it’s different stages. Luckily, we have staff members in the shop with knowledge in both fields. David, the head of blacksmithing, comes from an artisan background with years of experience as a blacksmith. “It feels good to be able to use my studio art degree and combine my education with experience here,” he said.
Andrew, a former camper and first year counselor, brings a more science-focused background. “I just took ‘intro to material science’ last semester as part of my engineering track,” he said, pointing to the phase diagram he had drawn on the wall of the shop. It showed the different stages of metal and the way that temperature affected it’s form. However, boys may not realize that they’re learning to blend of science and art while they’re forging iron in the shop - the most fun part about blacksmithing might just be the permission to create with fire and hammers!
In the shop, boys learn how to create something beautiful, functional, and strong themselves. They shape their own iron, hammering away until their persistance pays off. It’s a reminder that in a similar way, we’re able to forge our own futures, crafting, reworking, and remolding when necessary. It’s another day to shape our own iron - let’s start swinging!
