The forge has always been a hub for the community. People came to share stories, gossip and just keep warm on cold, wet days.
During the Victorian era, the current blacksmiths wife was the only one in the village that could read and write. Boaters and villagers alike would come to the forge with their letters so that she could read them out loud and then pen an answer back. They would leave the old letters with her. The walls of the forge was adorned by love letters, letters from family immigrated to far away and maybe the occasional IOU.
Built in 1778, it survived the bombings of World War II and later saved from being demolished by a shopping mall, Tooleys forge has some stories to tell.
The purpose of the forge when originally built was to help with the building of the barges that transported goods between Birmingham and Oxford, eventually to the bustling international harbor in London. The blacksmiths at this time shod the horses pulling the boats, made the rivets to hold them all together and did many repairs to home ware, carts and farmers equipment.
During the great wars, many of the young men that would have trained as blacksmiths or boat builders went to fight, never to come back and both the boatyard and forge struggled to keep in business.