The first settlers in this area lived in a primitive manner. Any tools they used were brought with them. When axes became dull, plows would break or a horse had thrown a shoe, the need for a blacksmith was acutely obvious.
As one early settler, Mr. Gardner Bird (1833) recalled, after the land was sufficiently cleared to admit of being broken, the plow became a necessity. To have the irons sharpened and repaired as necessary, Bird had to travel 22 miles to Dexter.
The earliest blacksmith in the area was Abram Fralick, who came from Plymouth in 1838. His shop was on the west side of the Grand River Trail between Main and St. Paul’s Street. The shop was built by William Balch as part of a hotel called the Balch House. By 1845 Morris DuBois was smithing in that shop.
Erastus A. Pratt came from Lapeer County in 1844 and followed the vocation of blacksmith in the Village of Brighton for 22 years, during which time he made most of the plow irons used in the surrounding country. His first shop was located on the present day site of the Presbyterian Church. David Thomson came to Brighton in 1843 and shortly after built a foundry on the site. In 1856 he built a brick foundry on the corner of Grand River Trail and North Street.
Many blacksmiths operated in Brighton over the years; too many to list here. At one time there were ten shops in the village. Most of them made wagons, carts, buggies and sleights. Wheelbarrows, landrollers, “grasshopper” cultivators, spike toothed drags, scythes and grain cradles were built and repaired in addition to shoeing horses and oxen.
Many farmers did their own metal work. Iron was often brought with them since it was not readily available in the wilderness. A crude forge would be devised and tools and equipment made by hand.
Even though living in a dirt floored log cabin, the homemaker had need for an oven for baking; andirons to hold the burning logs in the fireplace; iron hooks for holding cooking kettles; skillets, spiders, knives and other cooking utensils.
The corners of a log house were joined in such a manner as to not need nails, but hinges, latches, shutter dogs, etc., and were made of iron. The farmer needed scythes, sickles, ox yokes, harness fittings, horseshoes and other tools. Construction and logging called for axes, links, peavys, drawknives, crowbars, etc.
The blacksmith was generally regarded with respect. He often learned his trade at a young (10 years) age from his father or grandfather. Much practice and experience was needed to learn to judge how hot the metal should be in order to be worked properly; or in knowing how long to temper the hot iron in the tub of water to make a tool which wouldn’t shatter when used, as when a plow point suddenly hit a submerged rock. Only practical knowledge could tell how to measure (by the use of a “traveler”) and then cut the material for a wagon wheel rim before drawing it out; or how to weld two pieces together by hammering the hot metal on the anvil and bending to the desired shape on the horn. It took skill and a good eye to prepare the opening for the handle of the froe in such a manner that the tool would not fly off when in use. The presence of a good blacksmith eased the crude circumstances in which early settlers of the Brighton area found themselves.
Blacksmiths also were expected to be farriers, to know how to trim the hooves of an ox or horse and make shoes that fit properly on these animals. Not only the farmer, lumberman and builder made use of the blacksmith’s expertise. An accurate gun barrel was required by the hunter. Much produce was stored and shipped in wooden barrels with metal hoops, made by the smith. In return for making life a little less primitive he was often paid in produce, meat, eggs, etc.
The shop was often a place for local farmers to congregate; a welcome change from plowing, logging or hoeing corn. The floor was usually dirt, fireproof, which the forge and its bellows the center of attraction. Surrounding it were work tables, the anvil with a rounded horn for forming curved pieces and the water tub for cooling the metal to the proper temper. This was determined by the color of the metal. Hanging from wrought iron hooks, on could view an astounding variety of tools; tongs, hammers, cleavers, hack saws, several vises and mandrels would also be evident. Containers of fuel, charcoal made from the abundant forests in the area, in later years, hard coal brought on the train.
Often he’d make a tool for a particular job. One could take a pattern or just explain what was needed and he’d make the item. Often smiths built wagons, buggies, etc., which involved doing their own woodworking. This would include the nuts, bolts, pins, washers, etc. After the turn of the century, you could take the broken axle of your Ford and have him repair it. Today the smith is busy making decorative hinges, handles, fireplace tools and often works as a farrier.
Andrew Sharp, Jr., only 12 years old, came from Bennington, Gennessee County, New York with his father, Andrew Sharp, Sr. in the fall of 1837. After stopping for one week in Pontiac, they then moved into Genoa Township and settled on the west line of town. A blacksmith by trade, Sharp, Sr., built a shop on his place and used it a number of years. The son learned the same trade and operated a shop two years in Howell.
In “A Brief History of Brighton” by Seth Jacobs, 1907, we learn that “one Warren Hill came to the village in an early day and built . . two buildings on Grand River Street, (one) occupied by C. L. Reed (a blacksmith) and Reickoff Bros. (jewelers). The building on the corner (next to W. North Street) was occupied as a residence. . .”
IN 1847, Orlando A. Fuller bought the building which was the first school house in the village, built in 1837, on Grand River Trail (third house east of Hope Street). The structure was moved to the south side of Fitch (Main) Street, west of Grand River Trail on a lot owned by John Becker. It was used as a blacksmith shop until 1878, when it was moved again, to the rear of the lot and used as a barn.
Lewis Dorr, Sr., was a very early settler in the area (Genoa Township). He operated a tavern and stage coach stop on Grand River Trail northwest of Brighton at Kellogg Road. Dorr also had a blacksmith shop there to cater to the needs of the stage coach and freight wagon operators, et al. John Becker (probably born in Germany) worked for Dorr (c. 1850-60) as a blacksmith, wagon maker and tin smith. He and Louisa Dorr, Lewis’ daughter (born in Genoa Township) were married. (Both are buried in the Village Cemetery in Brighton along with their two-year-old child.)
In 1874 Henry Ratz bought Lewis Dorr’s farm and tavern including the blacksmith shop. Henry’s son, George B., finished his growing up years in that location and learned some about the blacksmith trade in that shop.
Anticipating the expansion of the west side of Brighton with the coming of the railroad shortly after the Civil War, Main Street was extended westward across the south end of the millpond. The street was low and muddy most of the time, so a footbridge was built next to the pond, over the water, for pedestrians. It spanned a distance of about 300′, from the village hall(Old Town Hall) to where the D. & C. Store is now located (314 W. Main). At that time a livery barn and a blacksmith shop stood on wood pilings with the millpond water beneath the buildings.
When the railroad came to Brighton in 1871, the Smith/McPherson Addition was platted, well promoted and lots sold. Hiram H. Smith, President of the Detroit, Lansing and Lake Michigan Railroad and Edward G. & Wm. Jr., McPherson, Howell businessmen, purchased land west of Ore Creek from Elizabeth Cushing and Elijah Fitch (who originally settled there in the early 1830s.)
Among the many who took part in this development of the west end of town, along W. Main, where John Becker and Wm. Pipp, who built the Pipp & Becker Hardware Store, c. 1871(SE corner W. Main & Hyne St.). Pipp lived on the E. corner of Grand River and Beaver and Becker on the SW corner of E. Main and East St.
A few doors east of the Pipp and Becker Hardware Store, Henry Herbst built a blacksmith shop on W. Main. He also built a house behind it facing North St. (Opposite the present Post Office site, 315 W. North.) Herbst, whose father lived on Euler Road, a quarter mile east of the Henry Ratz farm (corner Grand River/Kellogg), married Theresa Behrens, sister of Mary Behrens (Mrs. George B.) Ratz. Lots of family connections, which often helped local businesses survive.
George B. Ratz and Henry both worked in that shop and George B. continued to operate there after Herbst bought a farm out Brighton Road, near Lime Lake.
Other blacksmiths known to have worked in the “Henry Herbst and George B. Ratz Wagon, Carriage and General Blacksmith Shop” were: Arthur Lanning, Robert Phillips, Wally Cook, Will Shannon, and brothers Conrad and Adam Weber.
The Weber Brothers owned the business at one time followed by the “Cook & Shannon Wagon, Carriage and General Blacksmithing” c. 1895. The building just west was Charles Cushing’s harness shop and next was Alice Jolly’s millinery shop and then the George B. Ratz Hardware Store, which he bought from Pipp and Becker in the late 1800s.
At this same time one could find on the north side of Main Street, west of the mill pond, Charles Belding’s Livery and Dray Barn and Henry Rohn’s Blacksmith Shop. Further west, Pipp and Bitten’s saloon, with the Macabee’s Lodge upstairs, and a blacksmith shop behind it on First Street.
In 1910, Adolph Martin and his bride, Bertha Young, came to Brighton from Dortmuth, Germany. A Brother and other relatives were already located here. An expert blacksmith, he realized “there were greener pastures in Brighton” so they moved from their Clark Lake residence after only six months.
The Stuhrberg blacksmith shop on Grand River (where the Canopy is now located, 130 W. Grand River) was rented by the Martins. In 1914, they purchased the blacksmith shop on the northwest corner of North Street and Grand River (Champs Pub, 140 E. Grand River) from Norm Rosburn. Their living quarters were upstairs.
About 1926, this building was replaced with a cement block building, which had a bar in front and his shop in the rear. It was at this time the Rolison Hardware (111 W. Main) was built by the same builder. (His daughter remembers this irritation that his building was not completed first.) Their home then was across the street on the site of the North Street Professional Building, 121 W. North St.
Customers would bring cars in to him for repair. He often had to devise the repair from his experience and knowledge of metal. One customer subsequently acquired a patent for himself on Martin’s repair job. As most blacksmiths, he was also a ferrier, going to the horse barns when necessary. At the time he located in Brighton, seven smiths worked in the area; he outlived them all. When he retired he was the last smith in town. By then he had gone into the farm implement business. In the 1946 “Victory Home Coming” book an advertisement “Compliments Adolph Martin, Implement and Repair Shop” can be found.
In 1915, he became a U.S. Citizen. Aware of the benefits of living in a country where thrift and industry resulted in a satisfactory living for himself and his family, he often extended a helping hand to others. An example of his generous nature is depicted in a story a daughter relates – During the depression of the 1930s she encouraged him to try to collect from the many who owed him. “Do you have enough to eat?” “Yes.” “Are you going to school?” “Yes.” “These people may be having a harder time than we are.” She replaced the box of unpaid invoices back on the shelf.
Many of the area’s smiths were people who like Martin, had learned the trade in Europe and emigrated from their homeland. An appreciation for the opportunities in the U.S. seems evident in the responsible manner in which many conducted their business. The Martins, the Beckers, Hartmans, Dorrs, Herbsts, Webers and others (including wives) changed the wilderness into farmlands and towns. Today this area is home to new settlers who are also trying to be trustworthy citizens so those who follow can be proud too.
Compiled and edited by Marieanna Bair from the Argus-Dispatch Centennial Issue, 1967 and with the aid of Elsa Martin Stegena, Writing of Wm. Pless, Seth B. Jacobs, 1880 History of Livingston County and Foxfire 5