The Blacksmith Guild of Central Maryland brings its 36th Annual Blacksmith Days to the Carroll County Farm Museum the weekend of May 16–17, with two days of live demonstrations, forging contests, and handmade-tool auctions on the museum's grounds at 500 South Center Street in Westminster.
Demonstrations run 9:00 a.m. to noon and 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. both days. This year's featured demonstrators are Tal Harris and Derick Kemper of Damselfly Forge, and farriers will also be on hand.
The weekend's competitions include two forging contests — judged on quality of execution, originality, and difficulty — one for an item incorporating a sharp-cornered right-angle bend, a scroll, and a drop-the-tongs weld, and another for a forge-welded socket (think spear or wood chisel). First, second, and third prizes are awarded in each.
Drawings, auctions, and a potluck
Other weekend highlights include Iron-in-the-Hat drawings (Saturday and Sunday at noon, with donations of blacksmith-related items encouraged), a Live Auction of handmade items at 5:00 p.m. Saturday, a Tool and Equipment Silent Auction that ends at noon on Sunday, and a raffle drawing for handmade blacksmith tools. An optional Friday Potluck Dinner kicks things off at 5:30 p.m. on May 15.
The Blacksmith Guild of Central Maryland, founded in 1986 and incorporated as a non-profit in 1995, is an affiliate of the Artist-Blacksmith Association of North America and is dedicated to preserving and promoting the art of hand-forging iron.
About the venue and event admission
The Carroll County Farm Museum is set on 142 acres of rolling pasture just south of downtown Westminster and includes the 1852 Almshouse, working living-history exhibits, and walking trails. The museum itself is also open during Blacksmith Days for visitors who want to make a full day of it.
Regular farm museum admission applies to spectators at this event and is $5 for adults and $10 per family (children under 9 are free with a paying adult). For more details, visit the Carroll County Farm Museum or the Blacksmith Guild of Central Maryland.
The farm museum is located at 500 South Center Street, Westminster, MD 21157; call 800-654-4645 for general inquiries.
Sources: Blacksmith Guild of Central Maryland and Carroll County Farm Museum websites.