FORMER MCGRATH BLACKSMITH & RESIDENCE (ASCOT FORGE)

The former McGrath Blacksmith & Residence (Ascot Forge) at 2172 Ballarat-Maryborough Road, Ascot is significant. The following buildings and features contribute to the significance of the place: 

Alterations and additions made after 1945 including the kitchen and family room to the residence and the garage are not significant. 

The former McGrath Blacksmith & Residence (Ascot Forge) at 2172 Ballarat-Maryborough Road, Ascot is of local historic, representative, research potential, aesthetic significance and rarity value to the City of Ballarat.

The former McGrath Blacksmith & Residence (Ascot Forge) is historically significant for its associations with the closer farming settlement of the Ascot district and demonstrates the central role that blacksmith’s shops played in the development of rural areas until the middle of the twentieth century. A blacksmith’s shop was established on this site in the c.1860s and served the surrounding district until the early 1970s. As well as providing an essential service in the repair of farming vehicles and equipment, the blacksmith played an important role as a place for farmers to meet and socialise and had a mutually beneficial relationship with the former Ascot Hotel on the opposite corner. It has historic importance for its associations with the McGrath family who operated the business on this site for almost 100 years from c.1874 and built the current complex of buildings in the early 1900s. (Criterion A) 

The historic and representative significance of the former McGrath Blacksmith & Residence (Ascot Forge) is enhanced by its rarity value as a relatively intact example of a once-plentiful building type. (Criterion B) 

The former McGrath Blacksmith & Residence (Ascot Forge) was used as continuously over a 100-year period. As well as the extant structures, it contains a collection of associated tools and equipment and is likely to contain archaeological evidence including remains of the previous blacksmith buildings. It therefore has potential to yield further information about the use and development of this site and provide further insights into the processes associated with blacksmithing and wheelwrights. (Criterion C) 

The former McGrath Blacksmith & Residence (Ascot Forge) is significant as a representative example of a rural blacksmith complex with an associated residence. The simple, vernacular timber-framed construction with corrugated iron cladding is typical of blacksmith’s shops, as is the corner location diagonally opposite the former Ascot Hotel. The original use is demonstrated by the original brick forges and chimneys in one section, and some original machinery and plant in another. Of especial note are the wheel furnace and well and associated remnants of the winch/crane. (Criterion D) 

The former McGrath Blacksmith & Residence (Ascot Forge) is of aesthetic significance as a distinctive building complex, which is an historic landmark on a prominent intersection in the Ascot district. The twin gable-fronted form of the blacksmith’s shop provides a counterpoint to the gabled brick former Ascot Hotel on the opposite corner. (Criterion E)