The Cook County Historical Society acquired the Bally Blacksmith Shop property in August of 2013 and has been working on restoration of the historic building. Working as cleanup crew recently were (L-R) Drew Johnson, Duane Ege, Jeannie Johnson, Bob Pratt, Mike McHugh, Al Taenzer, Nate Carlson.
The Cook County Historical Society acquired the Bally Blacksmith Shop property in August of 2013, thanks to a grant from the Minnesota Historical Society Legacy Fund. Since that time, plans have been developing for how to share this important landmark. There has been a lot of work done at the Bally Blacksmith Shop over the past few months. The short-term goal has been to remove the contents of the wooden 1911 blacksmith building in order to prepare to stabilize it. That work is nearly completed.
Stabilization and some restoration work on the structure will continue this summer. The Historical Society has hired Doug Seim as construction manager. Seim has a background working with historic structures. He will oversee the process of making the blacksmith shop safe for a future as a museum. The long-term goal is to preserve this significant place for generations to come.
During the next few months Drew Johnson will be working to catalog the historic artifacts at the site. The Historical Society will also be asking the community to share stories of their experience with the Bally family and work that they’ve done. The history of this site affected all of Cook County’s past, and we want to be sure to gather as much information as we can about the three generations of Bally blacksmiths.
Drew Johnson, who is inventorying the artifacts in the old Bally Blacksmith Shop, shows off a treasure that was found in the loft of the wooden building—a business ledger from 1920. This will be invaluable as the historical society studies what work was conducted and for whom.
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