Manitoba Municipal Heritage Site No. 31

Blacksmith Shop
North Railway Street
Cartwright

Blacksmith Shop
Designation Date: October 16, 1989
Designation Authority: Cartwright (Village)
Present Owner: privately owned

The Blacksmith Shop, one of the last forges to operate in Manitoba, is a rare and representative working example of an enterprise that was vital to early farming communities in the province. The pioneer building with its substantial boomtown front but otherwise typical functional design, features the layout, workbenches and key internal structural elements of a shop built in 1888 and expanded in ca.1900. Like others of its type, the shop offered the possibility of quick, sometimes improvised repairs to the machinery and equipment used by farmers as they struggled to plant, nurture and harvest crops within the inflexible constraints of nature’s deadlines. On this site, a succession of smiths made their contribution to the economy of the Cartwright region, the most notable being Calvin Hill, the last occupant.