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Shoeing buffer. The old horseshoes were removed by cutting the nails using the blade of the buffer. The hoof was then cleaned using the point, and a small knife known as a searcher.

Country blacksmiths spent half their time shoeing horses. Farmers depended on horses to pull tools and vehicles, like carts and ploughs. Making a shoe needed great skill. The blacksmith would shape it from one piece of iron based on the width of the horse’s hoof. The iron was heated, bent into a V shape, then rounded into a horseshoe. The heel was turned down, and clips and nails made for attaching it.