Our Demo at Clifton Mansion -- What a Day!

All demos are unique and there is always something surprising, but our demo at Clifton Mansion this past Saturday stood out in the midst of a very busy season.  We were happy to demo at at the newly-restored Clifton Mansion for their 1812 event "A Day at Clifton: After the Battle" but we don't usually show up with our trailer on a tow truck!   This was a first for us.

On the way to the event, our trailer suddenly came unhitched from the truck.  Thankfully, the safety chains held and Jeff was able to get safely to the side of a busy highway.  We are so grateful to the wonderful Baltimore Police officers who helped us with traffic control in the rain for an hour and a half, called an emergency tow truck, and finally waved us off with a reminder that "the show must go on!"

And so it did, with some wonderful helpers (thanks Jeff, Robert and William!) who helped us set up very quickly and efficiently.
 

We discovered that the 1812 event had been combined with the Civic Works Day of Service, where 400 members of the community had served among the community all morning and then returned to Clifton Mansion to enjoy special events and participate in the "After the Battle" historical event.  It was a wonderful opportunity to get to introduce the art of blacksmithing to many people who had never seen it before.

While Jeff taught the guests outside, I took the opportunity to admire the Mansion: 

 

So, despite a surprising start to the rainy day, we ended up blessed to be able to educate appreciative guests and share in Clifton Mansion's celebration of its ongoing-restoration.