The blacksmith shop was a vital place for the early 19th century community at Jackson's Mill, needed not only to shoe horses but also to make repairs in the gristmill. A blacksmith's work included maintaining wagons, carriages, and farm equipment, and manufacturing articles for domestic and agricultural use. The blacksmith forged and shaped iron with an anvil and hammer, beginning by heating a piece of iron in a furnace, or forge, and using a bellow to force air into the forge to increase its temperature. When the iron was white hot, it was placed on an anvil and hammered into the desired shape. The blacksmith shop at Jackson's Mill would have served many families in this rural community.