Why Historical Hardware Matters

When choosing the right hardware for your home or restoration project, understanding the era it's rooted in can elevate your design from generic to genuinely timeless. From Colonial blacksmith staples to refined Georgian detail, each historical style brings its own character — and choosing the right one ensures your space stays architecturally authentic.

Colonial Hardware: Rugged Simplicity

Colonial hardware reflects the early 17th to 18th-century settlements — functional, hand-wrought, and straightforward. These pieces often feature:

• Blackened or raw iron finishes

• Bean and spade strap hinges

• Thumb latches, rim locks, and iron pulls

• Heavy textures, square nails, and clavos

This style prioritizes durability over decoration, ideal for restoration of historic homes or adding rugged charm to modern builds.

Explore Our Colonial Iron Collection

Early American Ironwork: Rustic Meets Refined

Early American hardware spans the mid-1700s through the early 1800s and reflects a transitional moment in U.S. craftsmanship — blending Colonial ruggedness with budding refinement. Expect:

• Hand-forged strap hinges with more curvature

• Decorative clavos and fasteners

• Early latch styles that balance function and form

This is perfect for farmhouses, lodges, and cabin restorations that want a period-accurate yet rustic aesthetic.

👉 Browse Our Early American Iron Hardware

Georgian Hardware: Classical Elegance

Georgian ironwork emerged in the late 1700s and early 1800s with British influence, marked by balance, symmetry, and ornate touches. Georgian-style homes often feature:

• Decorative escutcheon plates and ring pulls

• Refined finishes like oil-rubbed bronze or hand-rubbed beeswax

• Symmetrical, scrolled strap hinges

• More delicate proportions and finer detail

This style suits restoration work for estates, townhomes, and historic brick homes, or anyone looking to bring elegance to their iron selections.

👉 View Our Georgian Iron Collection

Bonus: Federal & Revolutionary-Era Options

We also offer substyles like:

• Federal Iron Collection — celebrating post-Revolution symmetry and neoclassical motifs
  👉 Shop Federal Iron

• Revolutionary Iron — showcasing period-accurate hardware from the 1770s–1790s
  👉 Explore Revolutionary Iron

• Heritage Collection 309 / “Bean Iron” — featuring signature rustic bean shapes in hinges, pulls, and fasteners
  👉 Browse Collection 309

Which Style Should You Choose?

• Restoring a log cabin? Start with Early American or Colonial.

• Working on a historic brick home? Look to Georgian or Federal.

• Creating a farmhouse feel? Mix Bean Iron or Revolutionary accents with Early American charm.

If you’re not sure which style fits your project best, our team is happy to help you match finishes, hinge shapes, or period-accurate fasteners.

Written by the Old West Iron Forge Team — crafting authentic American ironwork from our Idaho forge since 2011. Experience-backed, veteran-built, and proudly Made in the USA.