Victoria blacksmith's handiwork gets some TLC

Victorians heard the ring of Joe Bianchi's anvil on South William Street for almost six decades. In the 58 years he was in business, Bianchi dominated the spur business in the coastal cow country of South Texas. The shank on his spurs, often called the bottle opener or Victoria style, was his distinguishable mark. Passers-by are hearing a new sound on his old block. Instead of the ping of metal on metal, it's hammers and carpenters working on a major restoration project to bring the 109-year-old home back to life. David and Tammy Murphy, the current property owners, received a historic preservation grant through Victoria Preservation Inc. and the Victoria City Council to save the hand-forged iron fence Bianchi built around his home at 405 S. William St. Since the restoration began, the Murphys have taken a keen interest in researching the original owner and paying their respects to the contributions they made to Victoria. They've uncovered "treasures," spurs and bits, saving them in pill bottles for safe keeping. Bianchi added a brass tag in the fence's concrete post, dated July 4, 1935. His brand, +A, lives on at the curb on the southeast corner of the lot. "The history of this house holds the history of Victoria," David Murphy said. While Bianchi built the fence and others like it, he was most well-known for his hand-forged tools for Texas cowboys. He went by Joe, but his birth name was Giuseppe. He was born as the fifth of eight children in 1871 in the northern Italian city of Origgio, according to family history books. In 1885, when he was 14, he joined his family aboard a ship headed for Victoria. He later moved to Oklahoma to try to make a name for himself, but eventually came back to Texas. In 1901, he and his older brother Paul opened Bianchi Brothers Blacksmith Shop in Victoria. They manufactured hand-forged spurs and bridal bits, plain and silver mounted. The Bianchi brothers' blacksmithing firm was one of the most established and successful in town, according to Victoria Advocate archives. Bianchi purchased the lot at the corner of South William and Convent streets June 9, 1904, to build his home. He was single at the time, but less than a year later married. By 1907, he and Paul dissolved the business and he opened his own shop next door to the house on South William Street. He advertised "horse-shoeing on short notice" and was known for his craftsmanship and high quality work, according to family history books. People could tell the owner of a ranch from one of his cowboys by looking at the spurs. All the prominent ranchers in the area wore Bianchi spurs...more