Hello all, And no - I don't have one yet to have any specific query about but one can live in hope. This one is more like "Where have all the Kenyon's gone?" and seeing as it has been a little quiet on here this last week I thought that some of you may be able to put your minds to it to conjure up an answer. According to HSMOB Kenyon's were producing saws from 1787 to 1915 in one guise or another and under a variety of marks. But the only ones that we see (on Ebay at least) are some very early ones and no later ones at all. Which is very curious to say the least and were the saws that do appear not so manifestly early, I would say suspicious as well. Any WAGS as explanation or, better still any concrete and demonstrable facts? Fred
World wars eat up a lot of steel, brass, and copper. I'm sure many tools of all kinds got scrapped to feed the war machine. Maybe the older ones were stuffed away in old barns and workshops, and survived. Toby
Thanks Toby, But I am not so sure that that is a runner. Look at Spear and Jackson as a comparison. There are virtually no John Spear (1814 to 1824) saws around and the S and J's that are about are probably (equating with Kenyon's timeline) 1860 to WW1. This is exactly the opposite of Kenyon. And to get no Kenyons newer than the early 19th C. is positively bizarre. Saws being scrapped and re-used at the end of their useful life is probably part of the story, but this should be the same across all brands. There must be another cause, and it is annoying that it eludes me. Fred
Ah, Paul - if only I knew how. One soul for sale for anyone who knows the secret. Although you would be definitely getting the bad end of the deal. But even that doesn't answer it, for why snap up all the newer ones and leave some of the beauties (and not so beautiful but still very tasty ones) that have been unearthed? Fred
Hi Fred, In the latter years a significant proportion of Kenyon's production was for Tzarist Russia, and the Bolshevik revolution and subsequent failure to pay for saws already shipped was a factor in the financial demise of Kenyon... The place to look for Kenyon saws I think is in the flea markets and car boot sales in Moscow.... Back to timing, such as it is, the final closure of the business was as late as 1980... I would have thought this was 50 years too late... JOHN KENYON & CO. (SHEFFIELD 1930) LIMITED At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the above-named Company, duly convened, and held at Attercliffe Steelworks, Newhall Road, Sheffield on 23rd January 1980, the subjoined Special Resolution was duly passed: That the Company be wound up voluntarily and that Donald James Mant, of 44 West Street, Dunstable, Beds, be and is hereby appointed Liquidator for the purposes of such windingup. (306) Norman Hanlon They exhibited at the 1865 Exhibition at Crystal Palace, might be worth seeing if any records of the tools shown still exist. The Russian trade was done through ARCOS (after the revoultion at least), that might be another source of information on details of what was exported to Russia... ( that they never got paid for! ) Lots of avenues for research still to explore... Regards Ray PS A link to some information on ARCOS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Russian_Co-operative_Society
But they did get paid, Ray! There's a story from Ken Hawley via an employee of Sanderson Kayser, the ultimate successor to Kenyon; during the 1980s, when perestroika and all that was spreading good will around, the firm got a message from Russia (no idea exactly who) that they thought they owed some money for saws imported long, long ago and not paid for... And money was duly made over, Ken says. There are a lot of documents in the Sheffield City Library Archives about Kenyons in the 1920-1930 period, when they were on the point of winding up, and were having tremendous problems with their agents in Russia, who were unable to get any money for the exports, which had been sitting there for years, unpaid for. As far as I can recall, something like 80% plus of Kenyons' production went to Russia. From their earliest days they had Russian connections, being one of very few English merchants who were registered with the Russia Company (a bit like the E India Co), founded by Q Elizabeth in 1558 to trade with Muscovy. In my own collection I have a Fulton (their 2nd quality, but marvellous quality) handsaw of about 1870, a handsaw and a backsaw of the 1930s (Kensa brand), and I've been told about a Fulton backsaw of 1930ish and a Fulton Two man X cut which survives in the USA. But otherwise, they are pretty much rarities - apart from the early ones. But i agree with the previous posts, that Kenyons later than
Thanks Simon, Interesting that they got paid, only it was 50 years too late to save the business ! I have the feeling that there is a Russian Joke hiding in there somewhere... The Russian sense of black humor requires some work to appreciate.. Regards Ray
Don't know where the last bit of my previous post went to (some Russian spy editing it for me??) I meant to say that no, any Kenyons later than about 1800 seem to be extremely uncommon.
Plane Blades. Interestingly though Kenyon plane blades from 1880 onwards crop up all the time. Ive got a couple. Maybe the company changed direction.