Renowned SC blacksmith dies at 97

(Excerpted from an Associated Press article, in The State newspaper): “CHARLESTON, S.C. — Famed blacksmith Philip Simmons, whose wrought iron gates and other works grace gardens and entryways along the South Carolina coast and beyond U.S. borders, died at age 97, friends and funeral officials said Tuesday.

Born in 1912, Simmons began work as a blacksmith by putting shoes on horses as a young man in Charleston and moved into decorative ironwork by the mid- to late 1930s. His acclaimed pieces include one that hangs in the Smithsonian Institution.

In 2007, Simmons’ modest home and workshop were named one of the nation’s most endangered historic places by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.”

Full article here. Go on, now, go respect the man. Seriously: when’s the last time your office desk was named as an endangered historic place by the National Trust? Mr Simmons was an absolute treasure.