The Lowcountry native became one of the most celebrated ironworkers in the country
Legendary blacksmith Philip Simmons stands next to a railing featuring scrolls and plant designs outside his downtown workshop in this circa-1990 image. One of the most lauded decorative ironworkers in the country, he got his start as a 13-year-old apprentice to Holy City blacksmith Peter Simmons (no relation). Over the next 82 years, Simmons evolved from working on small projects such as horseshoes and wagon wheels to creating more than 600 wrought iron gates, balconies, window grilles, and fences in the Charleston area alone. Known for his single tight curls and original designs of Lowcountry motifs, including palmetto trees, shorebirds, snakes, and fish, he became the man to call for ornamental ironwork and repairs to centuries-old homes across the city. Beyond the Lowcountry, pieces of his works were acquired by both the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution and the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe. By the time he died in 2009, Simmons had received many honors, including a National Heritage Fellowship and The Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest civilian award. Established in 1991, the Philip Simmons Foundation has since transformed the blacksmith’s former home and workshop at 30 ½ Blake Street into a museum to preserve his legacy.
WATCH our So Charleston video on Philip Simmons’s ironwork:
