The clanging of the steel hammer on the anvil and the belching of the bellows for the iron forge will not be heard, nor will the broken pioneer wagons be fixed, but the tools will be there when the small stone blacksmith shop at historic Cove Fort is restored.
The second phase of the restoration of Cove Fort will begin this spring with the restoring of the blacksmith shop, according to officials at the Museum of Church History and Art in Salt Lake City, who are providing furnishings for the renovation.The shop will be restored to the period of the late 1860s and 1870s.
Cove Fort is located in southwest Utah about 35 miles south of Fillmore. The fort was a major stop on the main route that linked Salt Lake City with Mormon colonies in southern Utah and southern Nevada.
To make the restoration authentic, museum workers are looking for old blacksmithing, horseshoeing and oxshoeing tools. Anyone having such items and who would like to help in restoring this pioneer blacksmith shop should contact Richard Oman at the Museum of Church History and Art, 45 N. West Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah 84150, or by telephone at (801) 240-3587.
