<strong>Blacksmith 1st Mass. Arty. Harrisons</strong> by Alfred R. Waud, 1862.
Blacksmith 1st Mass. Arty. Harrisons by Alfred R. Waud, 1862.

The enslaved blacksmith George Granger, Jr., called Smith George or Little George, used imported bars of steel and iron to create or mend items such as hoes, bells, cookware, horseshoes, guns, plows, and the iron pieces of carriages.  Granger heated the iron or steel in wood charcoal-fueled forges that were kept hot with bellows.  He then forced the hot, softened metals into the correct shapes on an anvil, using a variety of hammers, tongs, files, and vices.  Granger also shoed horses and was allotted a percentage of the profits from work done in the Blacksmith’s Shop.