Old cole forge. | Look What I scored! | Forum

After the Cavalry was disbanded,around end of WWll, they sold the coal (not "cole") forges for some time at Fort Riley Kansas,where I served my horse shoeing apprenticeship, at the base surplus store. 

Anybody else remember  the bomb shelter craze of late fifties?

A surplus dealer in California bought all the remaining forges and sold the blowers, plus about six inches of the pipe he sawed off, to folks so they could pump (radioactive) air down into their shelters. I bought one of those unused forges from him and used it for twenty years until it was burned plumb out. Still have it in my shop.  They originally came with a pretty little anvil that fit in the forge box. ALL of the small anvils and ALL of the full sized shoeing anvils used in the shops were thrown into the Kaw river where it went through the base.I've only seen ONE of them in my many years of drifting around the country. Terrible. Sargent  R.L. Richmond, the last US Cavalry shoeing instructor, who was my instructor, saw them do it.

The forges,with anvil inside,went on one side of a big pack mule. All mounts went afield with an extra set of fitted shoes along, and the forges were mainly meant for minor adjustments in the field.

Probably more information than you wanted but there it is!