Memories of the Framlingham Blacksmith’s Shop
Local historian, author and long-term resident, John Bridges, shares his personal memories of his family ties with the Framlingham Blacksmith’s shop in Fore Street.
Our family had been long established as blacksmiths in Framlingham. The Surveyor’s Report of 1724 records Silvanus Bridges as a blacksmith in Double Street. By the 1820s my branch of the family had moved to Fairfield Road, with the forge on the corner with Fore Street. Those premises are still very recognisable today.
The Old Forge Framlingham Suffolk in the 1930s – 1960s
In the 1930s, the business was being run by my grandfather Albert Edward Bridges, who lived with his family in the adjacent house, No. 2 Fairfield Road. I do not think by this time that he did any blacksmithing as he employed a number of men for that specific purpose. He was mainly involved with expanding the agricultural-machinery side. Albert died in 1936, when my father Fruer then took over the business. He died at the young age of 47 when I was six years old. He was a heavy smoker and lung cancer claimed him.
I would sometimes walk round to the forge to see what was going on. By the late 1950s, the traditional smith’s work was in decline and there was only one blacksmith, Ernie Levett. There were others employed in various workshops repairing agricultural equipment. Farmers were now becoming more adept at welding and carrying out their own repairs which led to the decline of this work.
About Ernie Levett the Framlingham Blacksmith
Ernie seemed to me a giant of a man, in the usual mould of a blacksmith. I was told he could neither read nor write and others had to fill in his work sheet. He was always kind and understanding to me and seemed pleased that I took an interest in his work. There was now only one forge working, whereas there had been three. The Suffolk horses were now shod outside the travus on the other side of Fairfield Road. The wooden building is still there.
Shoeing the Suffolk Horse in Framlingham
After the old shoe had been removed from the horse, the new one was heated up in the forge. The smoke and smell produced by burning the shoe to the hoof would never be forgotten.
Ernie finished the job by hammering in the special horse nails and cutting off the excess, before rasping and filing everything smooth. I can readily recall the sight and smell of the shoeing being carried out on the pavement outside the travus.
The forge closed down soon after, when a new workshop was built behind the Green Shed further up Fore Street. Ernie would have found it hard to believe that someone would actually be living in the forge sometime in the future.
Old Blacksmithing Times – Forging Old Farming Tines
Other memories are of him making tines for the harrows that were dragged across the fields to break up the clods. The tines rapidly wore down so new ones had to be made. Ernie started with a length of square iron that was heated in the fire. One end was hammered on the anvil to form the spike while the other was made into a cylindrical shape to take a coarse thread. I was entrusted with this task which entailed locking it into the vice of the threading machine and then slowly turning the handle to cut the thread. The new tine would then be placed in the harrow frame and secured with a massive square nut. A set of harrows could be made to last forever!
Ernie also instructed me in the art of hack sawing. After several broken blades, he tactfully suggested I might leave this for another day!
Courtesy of John Bridges & the Framlingham and District Historical Society 2025
Further Insights into the History of Framlingham & its Blacksmith Shop
Autumn 2025 sees the publication of a new book by John Bridges, Framlingham – A Portrait though Time. Copies are available from a number of retailers in and around the town as well as from the Framlingham and District Historical Society.
You can find out more about Framlingham’s rich history as a commercial town at the fascinating Lanman museum located within Framlingham Castle.
Interested in seeing old photographs of Framlingham and finding out more about its rich history as a commercial town? Visit the Framlingham and District Historical Society
