Blacksmith Convention Will Begin August 4

It will be a hot time on Mackinac Island Saturday, August 4, as Mackinac State Historic Parks host the 23rd annual Benjamin Blacksmith Convention. More than a dozen blacksmiths from across Michigan will converge to practice their craft with forge and anvil.

From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., spectators may observe and talk to the blacksmiths at the Benjamin Blacksmith Shop on Market Street. The blacksmiths will work on fence and railing projects and demonstrate the art of forming redhot iron into hinges, hooks, handles, and other items that were essential to life on the Great Lakes frontier.

Robert Benjamin and a partner bought the Star Blacksmith Shop on Mackinac Island in 1885, and the shop remained in the Benjamin family and in operation until about 1965. The Benjamin family donated the shop to Mackinac State Historic Parks in 1968. It is now operated as part of the parks' Historic Downtown attraction, with blacksmithing demonstrated in the shop seven days a week from early June to late August.