At James Madison’s Montpelier this past fall, initial excavations of an 18th-century blacksmith shop site have recovered the discarded hammer of a flintlock pistol. This artifact, likely handled by enslaved blacksmiths during a repair, adds to a growing historical record of the Revolutionary-era Montpelier blacksmith shop, says Matthew Reeves, head of archaeology at the National Trust Historic Site in Orange County, Virginia.

The blacksmith shop served more than 200 customers from across the region and was a major source of income for the Madison family. This reliable income made it possible for future president James Madison to pursue his intellectual life and political career. While writing his 1787 Virginia Plan (a precursor to the United States Constitution) upstairs in his study at Montpelier, Madison would have been able to hear the ringing of the blacksmith’s hammer on the anvil.

According to historical documents from the site, the shop was led by Moses, an enslaved blacksmith who supervised several other enslaved blacksmiths. Together, they made about 1,500 items per year, including plows, wagon components, smaller items, and repairs—like replacing the hammer on a flintlock pistol. The busy shop doubled as a hub where news and ideas would have been shared among enslaved people working or running errands there.

The finding of the flintlock pistol hammer offers a tangible connection to the history of enslaved people at Montpelier—a piece of the story you can hold in your hands. “You can’t do that with a tobacco field,” says Reeves. Learn about participating in excavations at the site.