ASHEVILLE NC (WOLO) – Biltmore House and its eight thousand or so acres of sprawling land in Asheville offers many things to present-day visitors, but it is also a place where you can go back in time… sort of. When George Vanderbilt put his vision into motion, it was a vision of conservation and sustainability — practices that were very unusual 130 years ago. Vanderbilt operated the estate based on being able to provide internally for that very operation. The farm would provide food for the family and staff. Carpenters would build things that were needed and make repairs, and even the shoeing of the horses was done with horseshoes created right on the estate. And like so many things at Biltmore House, those practices are still in play over a century later — yes, even when it comes to working with hot steel. When you are at Biltmore, if you make your way to the area known as Antler Hill Village, you’ll meet Steve Schroeder — a.k.a. The Bearded Blacksmith. Schroeder serves as the estate’s Blacksmith Interpreter; in other words, he is a living history teacher who shares the traditional methods, usage, and daily life of a blacksmith on a large operating farm. Working with the same equipment that men in his position used over a century ago, he puts on demonstrations, makes items for the gift shop, and even makes repairs to equipment at 2,500 degrees. “You imagine the kind of work to run the draft horses out of there, the shoeing, the making of the plows, fixing the wagons, hand tools, and anything else iron and steel,” The Bearded Blacksmith says. The tradition of being self-sufficient continues beyond demonstrations. “When something does break in the house, or anywhere on the grounds, we don’t typically go to Lowe’s… We’re going to make it in the same techniques and same methods that would have been done originally,” he says. Schroeder works at the estate full-time as the resident “smithy,” and when he is not fixing things, demonstrating, or creating one-of-a-kind items for guests, he runs his own shop, where he creates and even gives lessons. You can learn more about the Biltmore’s Blacksmith program HERE. You can connect with The Bearded Blacksmith HERE. SEGMENT PHOTOGRAPHER: Rich Wandover   ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Tyler Ryan is an award winning television and radio personality, writer, investigative journalist, and professional emcee.  He appears daily on ABC Columbia’s Good Morning Columbia, as well as the radio stations in the iHeart Media Network.  Tyler also regularly appears as a criminal expert and journalist on regional and national crime based programs.  You can contact him directly via EMAIL Or on the socials: Tyler’s Instagram  // Tyler’s Facebook Categories: Digital Exclusives and Features, On The Road Tags: Asheville, bearded blacksmith, biltmore, on the road, rich wadover, travel, travel segment, tyler ryan, tylers travles ...read more read less