Pioneer Days - The Blacksmith

Our final Pioneer Days stop at our local fair was the Blacksmith shop. It was this shop where my teen beginning her junior year in high school became overwhelmingly intrigued.

Visiting the Blacksmith Shop

It was incredibly smoky.  The man was burning coal, so the smoke was strong and different from what we are used to.  

The Blacksmith demonstrated some of the different tools used in the pioneer days. Heating and bending the hot metal was interesting.  

Because of the hot fire, the girls couldn't go in the shop.  The just stood at the entryway and watched the blacksmith show how various items were used.  

It takes a lot to get my high school junior interested in history.  Coming from public school, it was her least favorite subject.  She detested the boring textbooks.  But that isn't true history.  True history is people and stories and adventures; not dates and dead people.  True history has lessons for today, not just a bunch of fact that have no meaning any longer. 

I love to make history come alive for my children. Finding field trips to help that happen can be challenging in a rural area.  But, I'm determined to find what I can to give my kids the kind of education that will make them life-long learners.