By Robert Medley
Managing Editor
By noon these days Shawn Shropshire is ready to close the shop.
He makes knives. His metal workspace is an oven when the heat index is in triple digits outdoors in the dog days of summer.
Shropshire’s knives have been featured on “Forged in Fire ” the History Channel series that also streams on Netflix. Soon an exhibit of his work will be featured at the Piedmont Historical Society Museum. The museum will be open with the knives on display for Founders Day Saturday, Sept. 7. The museum is located on Monroe Avenue downtown. Paul Francel, the Piedmont Historical Society’s president, recently visited the workspace where the knives are forged, and it was a hot one before 11 a.m.
Central States Hammer In, a traveling knife show in Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Kansas that originated in Branson, Missouri. Shropshire will host the show at the museum. About 40 different knife-makers are expected to be set up outside the museum.
He grew up as an Army brat and is a retired Oklahoma City police officer. About 20 years ago he started making knives and it progressed until six years ago his son asked him to apply to be on the History Channel. There are still episodes. He flew to New York to compete with other contestants, and the show was filmed in Connecticut. A film crew came to Piedmont. He is on Episode 39 in season five of “Forged in Fire,” The episode is titled “The Ring Hilted Sword.”
Most of what he makes are hunting and fishing knives. He also makes frontier-style Bowie knives. “Everything I make is usable and functional but some of it is more artistic,” he said.
He does not put a thermometer in the shop because he does not want to even know how hot it is, he said. Fans help blow around hot air. The forge glows inside so fans don’t help.
