What kind of work did the village blacksmith do?

The village blacksmith is the man who makes and shapes anything made from metal; for instance, he would shape horseshoes, make metal tools, and perhaps reshape anything metal that villagers would need. Most towns and villages in the nineteenth century would have had a reliable blacksmith because his job was a necessary one for the burgeoning country, especially during the Industrial Revolution.

In terms of Longfellow's poem, the village blacksmith does what one would consider an honest day's work: "His brow is wet with honest sweat, / He earns whate'er he can" (9-10). The blacksmith may not be the wealthiest man in the village, but he works: "Each morning sees some task begin, / Each evening sees it close; / Something attempted, something done, / Has earned a night's repose" (39-42). The blacksmith is a common man who is elevated to a hero's status in Longfellow's poem.