The Old Irvine Blacksmith Shop

The Old Irvine Blacksmith Shop. National Register of Historic Places. , A Piece of History of Orange County, California, constructed 1915-1916 , Orange County was once covered in orange groves and fields. The blacksmith shop supported the Irvine Ranch, the Irvine Bean and Grain Growers Association, and the East Grove Agricultural shipping center to ship lima beans, California oranges and other local crops., Today: Knowlwood Restaurant , The American West grew through the expansion of the railroad and agriculture. This building was in continuous use as a blacksmith shop for 70 years to repair and maintain farm equipment and machinery for the ranch. , Burned into the wall behind the forge are brands from Orange County Cattle ranches. Architecturally representative of a classic western building, it is one of the few historic false front buildings remaining in Southern California, a virtual archetype of the western blacksmith shop., The train, which still runs just next to the Old Town Irvine parking lot, shipped these crops to the rest of the country. Mr. Culver, also the name of a major street in Irvine, was the first to operate the shop., The farm community also contained a general store, post office, hotel, bean and grain processing plant, warehouses, grade school, railroad depot, and tenant bungalows., Another proprietor, Gene Thomas, made many improvements in farm equipment in this blacksmith shop. He was featured on the cover of Farm Magazine in 1935 for his inventions, During World War II, the blacksmith shop was critical to the harvesting of the lima beans for feeding troops.