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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us July 11, 2005 Essentially Ashland Forged in Ashland Denny DeBey stopped in Ashland for water and stayed to breathe life into iron Lance Pugh The 1955 Nash Farina station wagon sputtered to a stop near the intersection of Tolman Creek Road and Siskiyou Boulevard in the late spring of 1976. Steam bellowed from under the hood as Denny (Dennis Scott DeBey) and Diane DeBey looked around for possible sources of water, soon to appear as a spigot emanating from the empty hulk of a building on the corner. Once the radiator was topped off, they called Bud Wilkerson, a real estate agent whose sign on the property indicated that the structure was for sale. Bud was hard to ignore as he pulled up in his 1952 Chevy station wagon. Within a few weeks the purchase was completed and the DeBeys were the new owners of three commercial structures that were to become General Good’s Variety Store (Loose Ends, Bella Flora, The White Orchard Restaurant and now Kokepelli Kayak Shop), the Ashland Forge and the Yoga Center (first location of Lenny Freedman’s Pyramid Juice, this after Lenny and Jim Sims had run a juice bar in the rear of Lithia Grocery). Denny arrived in Ashland in 1969, having left Humboldt State in search of a master’s degree in outdoor education from Southern Oregon College (now SOU). While going to school, he drove a bus and taught for Head Start when not busy being a Back to the Land devotee. He had a cow, some chickens and was the first person I saw, sitting on his porch at 1779 East Main, when I first came to town. During his drive around town, he spotted many wood stoves, most past their prime, abandoned in side and back yards. He soon corrected the situation by rounding up a collection of these heaters, then taking a welding class at Central Point High School. After buying the Tolman Creek corner, he opened up the Ashland Forge (“New Age Stoves”). Denny watched a few blacksmiths in action and rapidly came to the conclusion that he had enough mettle for the metal. The Butler-Perozzi Fountain Terrace in Lithia Park was one of many projects Denny DeBay brought back to life when he came to Ashland. Submitted photo Tim Bewley (paint contractor, paint store owner, station manager of Rogue Valley TV) met up with Denny after having completed a seven-week course with Frank Turley of the Turley Forge Blacksmithing School in Santa Fe, N.M. Though Tim moved on after three months, Denny was left with fire in his belly and New Age twinkle in his eyes. Al Bert, a master blacksmith, was next to find the forge. He taught at the forge, there sharing his life’s knowledge with students from the State of Jefferson. He arrived being told that he had a year to live. Twelve years later he was laid to rest just south of the Oregon border under a metal cross forged by all his students. Many strong hands pounded red-hot metal in heart-felt tribute. Denny and Dianne got together with a few friends and bought 160 acres on Emigrant Creek Road, not far from Pilot Rock. His co-owners were Margie Davis, Tony and Gail Hites, Tom and Jackie Miller and Pete and Molly Peterson. They called their land “The Last Resort.” “I used to define distance by saying how long it took to drive from their land to Lithia Grocery,” said Denny. Throughout Ashland, many examples of Denny’s work can be seen, though much of it has been custom work for private residences: railings, gates, fireplace surrounds, latches, door handles — anything that can be forged, except checks. Iron Mike on the Plaza has been rescued twice by Denny, the last time requiring the repair of a broken arm. Denny worked on several fronts towards the restoration of the Butler-Perozzi Fountain Terrace in Lithia Park. The gate work “bamboo” at the Peerless Gardens on Fourth Street was custom crafted by the Ashland Forge. The rear window’s artwork at Geppetto’s was designed by Jackie Miller. The woodworking was done by Dale Shostrom and the metal was Denny’s work. More mundane examples of his work are the iron gates to the driveway of my house at 882 B St. The number of eclectic, nameless repairs he has effected is beyond count. As Denny looks into the red embers toward retirement, Ashland Forge has other hands to ensure that metal will be mastered. Malcolm Schubert, who worked for seven years in Cresta Butte, Colo., as a blacksmith shop foreman now brings additional tools and knowledge to the effort, guaranteeing that there will be a new generation of the Ashland Forge available for us all. I was cycling up Tolman Creek Road the other day and, as I was already at a crawl, took in the look of Ashland Forge and the Kokepelli Kayak Shop. I felt something converge and pulled over to take a sip of water — it was the water! Denny stopped here in 1976 and needed water. He has been a whitewater fan for the last 20 years. A Kayak shop is now where he first found water for his Nash’s bubbling radiator. Denny laughs easily and knows full well how interconnected this town was and, in some circles, continues to be. He is liked by all who know him. He works with fire in a town called Ashland. What could be more perfect? (Future columns will focus on many downtown businesses and linchpin people that have helped make Ashland unique. Chateaulin, The Websters and the Varsity Theatre will lead the charge from times past to lend perspective to the revival of the downtown. Send your favorite remembrances to: [email protected]. 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