The Pantagraph from Bloomington, Illinois • Page 52

The Sunday Pantagraph, Nov. 30, 1980 D-15 Smithy There are some jobs done in the forge that can't be done other ways, says Chatsworth blacksmith Charles Dennewitz. A well-used and worn anvil and hammer await Dennewitz, who still works 10 hours a day, six days a week. I i l. .1 4 A'.

ft Hv-i, A' it f.f I S. I sit -0 Pantograph photos by Nancy Holding 80-year-old blacksmith He still forging ahead 1 1 1 v-- j- Jt f4 4 rh tr 1 I ff I I Dennewitz with the job of shoeing his horses. To avoid it, Dennewitz said he didn't have the proper nails for the job. However, the next day the man called and said he "found the nails in a hardware store." Reluctantly, Dennewitz traveled to the man's farm after supper that night. When he arrived, not only was the man's horse there to be shoed, but so By Mary Ann Flick CHATSWORTH The dark room near the back of the garage takes on a glow when the forge is fired up.

The smell of burning coal fills the air and the electric engine hums as the iron grows hot. When the metal is white hot, it is ready to be molded, straightened or sharpened and Charles Dennewitz is ready to do the job. Dennewitz carefully removes the metal from the fire to the anvil. The pounding begins. "There are some jobs done in the forge that can't be done other ways," Dennewitz said.

"Like pointing plows." And who could question Den- sold all my tools so I could honestly say I couldn't shoe horses any more." "When an old fellow dies, I try to get to the auction to see what I can find." Harvest time still is the busiest season, Dennewitz said, with sharpening of plow shears and repairing other machinery. The res tne t'me- ne has what he calls "tinkering jobs" to keep him busy. He works six days a week, 10 hours a day. Dennewitz travels a lot just as he did years ago to purchase blacksmith equipment such as 25-and 50pound hammers. He fixes them up and then sells them.

"I've been going to auctions for 60 years," he said, as he pointed out some of his finds. One item is a pair of Edwards iron shears. "Fifty-eight years ago, I bought a pair of these for $21," he said. The same shears cost $350 now. The original tools Dennewitz used to start the shop are still in use.

The handmade forge sits near a corner with two anvils close by. Dozens of tongs hang by the side for easy access when a hot piece of steel needs to be picked up. The 50-pound hammer is close by and there also is a drill that can be used manually or electrically. The items Dennewitz sells are ones he's purchased through the years. Three rooms of the garage are filled with his purchases.

He keeps up on the market by attending the Thresherman's Reunion in Pontiac and other such events. Arid, he said, "When an old fellow dies, I try to get to the auction to see what I can find." Dennewitz himself is only 80. and plows to fix. Dennewitz would mark each piece with the name of the owner and set it aside until he could get to it. After a 15-hour day, which began about 6:30 a.m., a lot of the work would be finished, but there would be more coming in the next day.

Until about five years ago, Dennewitz shared the work with his brother, George. In the 1940s, Dennewitz' son Bill joined the crew, but his interest was not in the blacksmith end of the shop as much as in the mechanical end. As years passed and automation took over, the shop was expanded to the front, the side and the rear. About 43 years ago, the Dennewitz brothers became Standard Oil dealers in addition to blacksmiths. A 1942 price sheet still hangs in the old part of the garage and gives an idea of the varied talents of the men.

Gasoling was 15.3 cents a gallon, labor was $1.50 an hour, steel used in repair work was 10 cents a pound and welding rates were $3 an hour with a minimum charge of 50 cents. The work was hard and in summer, it was hot. Dennewitz said there were times when there was just too much to do. Shoeing horses was hard work," Dennewitz said, "and I wanted to stop doing it." That was easier said than done, he found out. One day after World War II, a customer approached were four mules from a neighboring farm.

"After that," Dennewitz said, "I sold all my tools so I could honestly say I couldn't shoe horses any more." Many other jobs Dennewitz did as a blacksmith were taken over by automation. But the garage rolled with the times. Today, it is serving the third generation of the Ed Franey family. In the beginning, Franey would bring in his horses, plows and buggy to be fixed. Then came his son John, who would have tractors to be repaired.

Now, John Jr. brings in modern tractors and cars to be fixed. newitz? He's been a blacksmith for more than 57 years. He learned the trade by watching his uncle. In his early years, he worked in a shop on his farm south of Piper City.

On Dec. 15, 1924, he bought the F.R. Bockman shop on the main street in Chatsworth and continued the job that Bockman had been doing for 47 years. During harvest season, the work would come in in droves. There were horseshoes to wagon parts to repair, wheels to build fox it hounds INVITES YOU Modern Classics of lasting beauty and value To their Beauty Workshop, to be held Tuesday Dec.

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