danrouth

Blacksmith

Master blacksmith Jerry Darnell works in his shop, Mill Creek Forge, on Busbee Rd near Jugtown in Moore County, North Carolina. Jerry is a retired high school math teacher who now produces colonial style iron works full time. He started working with metal when he was young, learning welding and metal work from his father, and then learning blacksmithing from several nationally known smiths. Jerry has been forging metal for some 40 years. He now also teaches blacksmithing at several national craft schools such as the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, North Carolina. For more information on his business and his beautiful work, go to http://www.millcreekforge.com/.

" Oh give me a home where the…"

Randolph County

Most folks probably think that it’s boring living out in the country in a place like Grays Chapel, but to be perfectly honest, some days it gets quite exciting. On Tuesday my wife called and told me a buffalo was walking down the road in front of our home, something that normally doesn’t happen in North Carolina. I made a few calls, and sure enough found out that neighbor Matthew Walker owns several buffalo and as livestock are apt to do, had 3 animals get out out of his pasture. Yesterday afternoon Matthew located an eighteen month old male in the woods across from our house and my son Tristan and I went over to watch and give a hand. With the help of a little tranquilizer, 3 ropes, a tractor and several men, we were able to lead the wayward bison out of the trees and onto a livestock trailer with a minimum of stress and no casualties.

Amos Hinshaw House

History

Across the road from the Amos Hinshaw barn is of course the Amos Hinshaw house, a lovely late 19th century Victorian farmhouse. Behind it is a one room 18th century house structure. The farmhouse and the barn are both built of heart pine cut and sawn on the Hinshaw property.

Amos Hinshaw Barn Details

History

I continue today with some interior and detail views of the Amos Hinshaw barn in southern Randolph County, North Carolina. Built sometime around 1880, the design is of a type not normally seen locally with it’s massive two story design and brick ramp leading into the second story.

Latch detail.

A pile of horse “single trees” along with plows and implements on the ground floor where livestock was housed and equipment stored.

Notice the strips of wood on the floor of the barn ramp to provide traction for the horses/mules bringing hay into the loft.

Amos Hinshaw Barn Exterior

History

Across the road from the Evergreen Academy is still another gem of Randolph County, North Carolina historical architecture, the Amos Hinshaw barn. Built sometime around 1880 by Quaker farmer Amos Hinshaw, it is like no other barn in the county with it’s massive construction and a brick ramp leading to the second floor loft to enable wagons to drive in with hay. The plan is based on Swiss style barns seen in Indiana by Amos’s father Thomas during the Civil War. The story of why Thomas was in Indiana is a fascinating one and can be read in the following genealogy link. http://www.rawbw.com/~hinshaw/cgi-bin/id?326

Evergreen Academy

History

Located in southern Randolph County, North Carolina, Evergreen Academy is a one room school house built by the Quakers shortly after the Civil War. It remained in use until sometime around the 1920’s. I say one room, although there is a folding door system that will convert the main area into two spaces. While all the desks and other artifacts have been removed (except for the lone chair above and a few boards and tools), the school building has been basically untouched since it was last used. As one with a background in archeology, stepping through the door is about as close to a King Tut moment as I will ever have. I walked in and immediately saw the chalk letters on the boards that are one hundred years old and remain unchanged since the moment they were written. It was like opening a time capsule. The writing is on blackboards. I use the plural, because there is no slate, but rather the wall boards are painted black. Standing in front of the boards, you can almost hear the children that once studied here.

Photographs of History

History

Before I went to photography school, I received a degree in Anthropology and Archeology. As I wander around looking for opportunities for photographs, the historian in me sometimes comes out. Last week I happened upon a couple of fascinating historical locations in southern Randolph County, North Carolina. I had the chance to look inside the Evergreen Academy, an original Quaker schoolhouse built just after the Civil War and an adjacent property, the Amos Hinshaw barn, built sometime around 1880. I will be sharing images over the next few days.