JOHNSTOWN — Officials from the Center for Metal Arts said they are eager to forge a new future for the blacksmith shop along Iron Street in Johnstown after recently receiving $6 million in state and federal funding for structural restoration projects.
Executive Director Patrick Quinn said “much-needed” structural renovations to the center’s “old buildings” is expected to start next month.
That includes work to replace the roof, post and beams and furnaces for the blacksmith shop, the pattern shop and the center’s administrative building, he said, adding the duration of the work is undetermined.
“I don’t know how long it’s going to go on,” Quinn said of the work. “We have to see what we find once we start getting into these older buildings here.”
Built in the 1850s, the buildings were initially started as the Cambria Iron Co. before the Bethlehem Steel Corp. took it over, said Bill Meinel, the center’s director of development. After Bethlehem Steel shut down in the early ’90s, the buildings remained vacant for nearly 30 years before the Center for Metal Arts opened in 2018 and “brought a dormant facility back to life,” he said.
“This is a great kind of historical facility. It’s on the national register of historical places,” Meinel said. “We’re proud to be the stewards of the facility.”
Quinn said the restoration will allow for an expansion in programming.
The Center for Metal Arts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit forging school that offers workshops and artist residencies throughout the year in topics ranging from tool making to architectural iron work, sculpture and traditional joinery, Quinn said, noting workshops range anywhere from one-day beginner sessions to intensive six-week programs.
“We focus on education and the preservation of the craft of forging,” Quinn said. “It’s a traditional craft with a modern context.”
It attracts students from all over the country as well as international students from Europe, Asia and South America, Meinel said, noting the center attracts worldwide interest because of the historical equipment that officials have restored.
“There’s really no other place where you can find some of this old equipment from the late 1800s, early 20th century, that can be used for metal sculpting,” Meinel said.
An Aug. 28 groundbreaking ceremony for the announcement drew a crowd of more than 50 business leaders and political dignitaries, according to Meinel.
Community Foundation for the Alleghenies President Mike Kane was among those in attendance.
Kane said preserving the buildings is not only a good thing for the Center for Metal Arts, but also the broader community.
“It’s really been a community effort and a collaboration to make this happen and it’s been really positive to make this happen, especially for the community,” Kane said.
Mirror Staff Writer Matt Churella is at 814-946-7520.
