Adirondack Folk School cuts ribbon on expanded and winterized blacksmith shop

The Adirondack Folk School‘s blacksmithing program has been one of its most popular programs, but until this spring, it did not have the facilities to run the program year-round. The forges were housed under an open pavilion built shortly after the school first opened 15 years ago. The pavilion was originally envisioned as a space for square dancing and building canoes. However, the school’s founder, a blacksmith, saw the pavilion’s potential as a blacksmith shop.

Interest in the program outgrew capacity, and the school sought to expand and winterize the space to increase safety, allow more classes and provide a comfortable workspace during the frigid months of winter.

On Wednesday, Local and state officials, members of the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce, and Adirondack Folk School administrators, instructors and students gathered at the Folk School on Main Street in Lake Luzerne to celebrate, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, the completion of a project five years in the making, the expansion and winterization of the blacksmith shop.

The building now has an enhanced electrical system, heat, and a 390-square-foot addition that makes space for a dedicated welding area and additional classes. Blacksmithing instructor Steve Gursler says the upgraded facility gives them more flexibility in scheduling classes and provides more room around the forges, which makes for a safer space.

Gursler gave a tour of the expanded blacksmith shop, pointing out the wide variety of tongs hanging at the forges, each having its own specific purpose. He spoke of the ancient craft of blacksmiths, how it is the one profession where the craftsmen make all their own tools. “The Worshipful Company of Blacksmiths in London— very old organization — they have a motto that says, ‘By hammer and hand, do all things stand.’ In other words, everything, all of civilization, comes from the ability to forge and work with metal,” Gursler explains.

Cranking a hand-crank blower, Gursler fanned the flames of his coal-burning forge to bring the temperature up to 2,000 degrees. He thrust a rod of metal into the flames until it glowed orange and then brought it to his anvil (which he called a road runner killer) and pounded it with a hammer to form a garden trowel. “If you like fire and heat and loud noises, then blacksmithing is kind of fun,” he says.

According to Folk School Executive Director Terri Cerveny, when the school first opened, about 200 students attended each year, “… and now, 15 years later, we’re over a thousand students a year. We offer over 300 classes and programs.”

Adirondack Folk School Board of Directors President Tanya Tobias-Tomis spoke about the importance of the upgraded blacksmith shop. “This is an expansion,” she says, “but it is more than that; it is an expansion for our future. We can offer more classes, we can hire more teachers, and we can do more of what we do best, essentially, which is teach the arts and crafts of the Adirondacks to people all over the country. I might even say we are international, because we’ve had students from Canada.”    

In addition to blacksmithing, the Adirondack Folk Schools offers classes in woodworking, weaving and fiber arts, basketry, ceramics, glass art, jewelry making, metal arts, leather craft, soap-making, photography, music and more. A series of food and cooking classes teaches cheese making, beer brewing, and pizza making utilizing a wood-fired pizza oven on the school grounds just outside the blacksmith shop.

Jude Morrow, a student from Burnt Hills, says he has been taking Folk School classes, mostly in blacksmithing, for more than two years. He was inspired to sign up for his first class by the TV show “Forged in Fire.” After that first class, he says he was hooked and went on to take more than 40 classes.

Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Gina Mintzer cited data the Chamber has collected on the school’s financial impact on the region. The school supports more than 150 local jobs and contributes more than $300,000 in business sales annually. Additionally, students travel long distances to attend classes, and they stay overnight and invest in the community.

“These numbers, while impressive,” Mintzer says, “they only tell part of the story. They don’t capture the spark of creativity in a weaving class or the quiet pride in a handmade canoe paddle, or the roar of the forge as iron is transformed into art. They don’t capture the lives touched, friends formed or the traditions that are carried forward.” The Adirondack Folk School, says Mintzer, has “become a cornerstone of cultural and economic vitality right here in Lake Luzerne…This school is much more than a place to just take a class; it is where heritage and hands-on learning come together. It’s where ancient techniques find new life.”  

Following the ribbon-cutting, guests were invited to enjoy pizza made by Folk School instructor David Riihimaki.