Contributed article
PIMA — At the Eastern Arizona Museum & Historical Society of Graham County in Pima, there are many artifacts displayed of tools and machinery used during the 19th and 20th centuries centuries. Most of them were hand powered or animal powered and have not been used in decades — only looked at curiously by thousands of museum visitors over the years. That has changed in recent months thanks to the consistent efforts of Max Maxwell, a local self-taught blacksmith.
First, some background on the artifact. In 1908, Amos Packer opened a blacksmith shop in Pima offering repairs for wagons, buggies, farm, ranch and horse equipment. The accompanying photograph shows Mr. Packer in his shop with his arm on his forge and in the background is his helper, Joe Horn. Mr. Packer served as Pima’s mayor for six terms and when the Town Council wanted him to continue for another term, he turned them down. His business building stood one block south of where the museum is located which is 100 S. Street and several yards west on that street. He operated his business until his death in 1940. It is not known how the forge came into the hands of William (Bill) Carter, but his family donated the forge to the museum in 1977.
Max Maxwell and his wife, Korra, were vendors at the Museum’s Holiday Bazaar last November and December when he became aware of the forge and started thinking of the possibilities of bringing the dusty artifact on the museum patio back to useful life. After approval from Museum Curator Karrie Wilson, and support of the Museum Board, Max has fired up the forge on Fridays and offers demonstration of the process he goes through to create various useful metal items for sale.
Mr. Maxwell is one of those blessed souls who have found what he loves to do with his time each day. He easily shares his passion and what has brought him to this point in life.
“In 2007, I had an art teacher by the name of Robert Pugh. He was and still is a knife maker in Joseph City, Arizona. He used the material removal method (grinding away unneeded material) to make knives, not forging. He gave me a lot of guidance for grinding bevels, handle attachment methods, and handle shaping. My methods have changed a lot over the years, but I made knives that way until sometime in 2018.”
“I was working for Ponderosa Aviation and was asked to train the new mechanic to run the fuel trucks. His name is Parker Merrill. He noticed one of my knives on my hip and asked if I made it. I told him that I did and the conversation turned to forging. He had made a gas forge and offered it to me. I jumped on the opportunity to learn the new skill. There were many YouTube videos that were watched and plenty of wasted steel in the beginning. I’ve now been forging fulltime for a living for two years.”
Max will be demonstrating his blacksmith skills this Friday & Saturday on the patio of the Eastern Arizona Museum: Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. His products can be seen at madmaxforge.com .
Mr. Maxwell’s extended demonstrations on the resurrected Packer forge are part of Pima’s Heritage Days sponsored each year by the Eastern Arizona Museum & Historical Society of Graham County marking the 144th anniversary of the founding of Pima (originally Smithville) in April 1879. Following is a list of other events taking place in Pima Friday and Saturday, April 21-22, to mark Heritage Days:
Quilt Show — Old Pima Church Cultural Hall, Friday noon to 4 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Friday
BBQ Dinner — Pima School Cafeteria, 5-7 p.m. $10 plate; $7 6-11 years (5 and under free)
Saturday
Cowboy Breakfast — William Carter Farm Museum, 7 a.m., $6 plate, $4 kids plate (11 and under)
Flag Raising — American Legion
National Anthem — Vocal Group
Steam Engines Demos — The Taylors
Raffle for 2 quilts, walking stick, jewelry Carter, Crockett, Merrill, Sanchez, and Weech Family Displays
