The Moran Foundation was established in 2008 with a 3-part mission…
…“to educate, preserve and promote the ancient art and craft of hand forged knives and tools used in bladesmithing,” “[to] establish a William F. Moran, Jr. Museum for the collection and presentation of hand forged knives and blacksmith metalwork,” and “[to] preserve the Moran Forge as a working bladesmith shop.”
They have remained active on each of these fronts, with developments continuing apace.
Probably the easiest prong of this mission is preserving the Moran Shop. Problem is, it was “just” Bill Moran’s shop. It wasn’t intended to serve as an educational and demonstration space. This needs to be remedied to fulfill the education and promotion aspects of their mission. To help them in this effort…
“Late last year, the Foundation announced plans for its next project: a brand new 3200 square foot, handicapped accessible, 40’ x 80’ structure with room for eight gas forges as well as a master coal forge, a classroom / meeting room, bathrooms, storage, and additional space, as well as all of the associated equipment for making hand crafted knives.
“This is the perfect opportunity to create this learning institution,” says Foundation President Robert Wilson. “[Last October] we made the decision to create this new building in honor of Bill and also to take advantage of the popularity
of the classes we’re offering.”
Another way that the Foundation seeks to educate and preserve Bill’s legacy is through their annual “All Forged Blade Show”. Now in its 5th year, the show will take place this coming October 19th. See the KnifeMagazine.com Events Calendar for full information.
We featured the Moran Foundation and wrote about its mission in the September 2019 print issue. We have included the entire article below. KnifeMagazine.com Premium Online Members can view the complete issue, and the entire Knife Magazine and Knife World Archives dating back to 1975 in The Vault —> Magazine Archives in the menu bar at the top of the page.
The sign, pictured at the top and again in the text below, is particularly special. Designed and constructed by Foundation members Ed Stockman and Justin Graves, it contains a giant replica of a classic Moran bowie which took more than 300 man-hours alone to create. Read on…
The Moran Foundation can be found on Facebook (@TheWilliamFMoranJrMuseumFoundation) or by visiting www.williammoranmuseum.com