Blacksmith Shop

Melvin Doughty of Doughty Steel donated building supplies and his collection of blacksmith equipment that he had kept over the years. Records show that building the shop took place in 1990.

A concrete slab was poured over half of the floor space and the heavier equipment moved onto it before construction started. The structure is large and houses many of the tools and pieces of equipment used in the blacksmith trade. The forge was built to Doughty’s own specifications. Volunteers (when available) fire up the forge and demonstrate techniques of the trade.

All equipment is kept in working order. A set of dies, a trip hammer, and other tools on display were used by Melvin Doughty in his early adobe blacksmith shop in Eckert. On display, a machine that was used to make circular wheel rims. Adjustments could be made for variations in wheel sizes. Other machines are displayed. An anvil sits on a piece of Surface Creek history. A tree was being cut down and sawed into pieces on the Bull ranch. One piece, just the right size, makes a convenient stand to hold the anvil.

Visitors to the blacksmith shop will also see a display with examples of barbed-wire and a mosaic of the symbols used by ranchers throughout the local area, brands from an earlier time, some still in use for branding cattle today.

PIONEER TOWN HISTORY

The Austin Depot

The Austin depot was salvaged and moved to a location in south Delta in the 1960's where it remained until it was moved to Pioneer Town in September, 1994.