At the turn of the twentieth century, the blacksmith trade thrived in Cecil County. Smithies, their dark, dingy shops cluttered with tools, were found in every town and many villages where they worked away at forges, shoeing horses, repairing farm implements, and shaping metal. The clang of their hammer striking red-hot metal on an anvil was a familiar sound around the county.
In 1892, the county had at least 44 blacksmiths.1 Two of these tradesmen were Robert Boone Gibson, in Charlestown, and Ellis McMullen, who worked the anvil in Mechanics Valley. But the days when these shops were common started slipping away as automobiles gained in popularity while horses slowly disappeared from the roads. This technological shift brought the need for a new craftsman, the auto mechanic.
By the 1930s, the automobile had become the dominant mode of transportation, and Ruben H. T. Dunbar became Elkton’s last 19th-century blacksmith. His shop on North Street closed in September 1933 when the 66-year-old smithy suffered a fatal heart attack. Shortly after he passed, Henry Dorsey’s unattended horse, “Prince,” trotted up the door of the shop, the Cecil Whig reported. Once he gained entrance, the horse stepped up to the forge to await the proprietor. Those around the shop “tried to drive the horse home, but he refused to go, so often had he been taken there for a new pair of shoes,” the Cecil Whig reported. Elkton’s last 19th-century blacksmith had passed away.2
The decline of the blacksmith trade in Cecil County reflected the changing times. With the automobile becoming more popular, there was less need for blacksmiths to shoe horses and repair farm implements. The blacksmith trade had been a vital part of rural life for centuries, but it became obsolete with the advent of new technology.
A similar decline in the trade took place across the nation, as people needed auto mechanics to fix their cars, and horses no longer appeared on the streets. It was a reflection of changing times.
My great grandfather, John Anderson, married to Martha E Anderson, was said to be a blacksmith at Principio Furnace. A family story says he was kicked by a horse during smithing and died. Church records record his death in 1875. No documents of him exists before his death. After many years of researching not even DNA has helped find connections to him.
Thanks for sharing this family story about the blacksmith at Principio Furnace, Maria.