Hello all, No- I'd never heard of them either (except the D and S) until I got them delivered in a job lot purchase from Ebay. The seller certainly didn't name them in the listing except the Oxley, curious not to, it would probably have put them out of my price range had he done so. The saws are listed below in order from the top of the photo. Now to the saws. The Oxley (Wolverhampton) is relatively easy as it has the Joseph Tyzack "Legs of Man" mark. But the initials are only JT, not JT and S. In 1856 Joseph Tyzack is recorded in the Online Directories as making plasterer's tools. In Whites of 1862 (p181) he is at 35 New George Street still doing plasterer's tools and it is not until the 1879 directory that he is making saws with his son. Do we know when his son joined the business as this would give an upper date for the saw, and when he is first recorded as a saw maker. NB Oxley Park is a place in Wolverhampton which probably accounts for the name. The blade is 26", but with 7 3/8 inches at the heel. The Williamson has all the hallmarks of an 1880+ cheap brand, but a brand of which maker? It is a single name (cheap stamp), ending in "son" (my own idea of a brand indicator), with a London Flat handle ( again a cheap form of handle) and 1/2inch nuts which prevents it from being as early as it looks. It is 24" On the Bradshaw, the nuts are nearer 3/8ths than 7/16ths and for a moment I thought that it may be early -ish, but I found a Frederick Bradshaw (saw maker) at 103 Arthur Street in Whites (Sheffield and Rotherham) 1901. So it is relatively late. That is the only entry for him that I could find. Do we have any better dates? The blade is 8" As for the I(orJ) H Butler, I have no idea. Has anyone ever heard of him, or is this a brand as well or a supplier/retailer? The D and S is here only because it has a near perfect handle, a lovely 1770 medallion and enormous 5/8th screws. The rest of the saw, especially the back where the name should be is is very corroded. The handle is almost an exact replica of the Taylor Brothers the I am going to send to you Ray, except that it has a slightly more prounounced beak. When I get to a scanner, I will send you one of this as well. Again, hoping for replies, Fred PS I did not put the scratches over the Oxley mark. That, unfortunately was done by the seller.
I have solved the problem of my JT/JT and S query on the Oxley on this topic. I have just cleaned a builder's trowel and it is made by J Tyzack and Sons, but the mark is the same as the one on my saw - the Legs of Man with JT only on it. The "England" puts it at between 1891 and 1921 (or 1912 depending upon who you believe) for the trowel and so the lack of the S on the Legs of Man mark has no significance for date. So the saw has the look of another 1880+ one. There is an interesting indent where the nib should be though. Original or later adaptation? Fred
First of all apologies for the very non-deliberate mistake in the first bit of this topic. As you may well have realised the D and S is out of sequence as regards the text and the photo. It is third down in the photo but last in the text. I hope that I have solved the "J and H Butler" mark on the bottom saw in the photo. In Pecks 1896 - 1897 there is a J H Butler of Bell Works, Bell Street, Wolverhampton. There is no mention of him making saws as such but he does describe himself in the Directory as doing "all kinds of stampings for iron and tin-plate workers" (advert on page 242) and "any small articles made in iron, steel or brass". This sort of work is not a million miles removed from stamping out a saw blade. So, exactly the right name and right area of work and about the right era as well. I have convinced myself. Fred Once again, I have tried to both download an image of the advert but the file is too big and it will not cut and paste, so if you are interested to see it you will, I am afraid, have to go to P242 of the directory.
D&S ?? Might it be G&S ? I have a pretty little panel saw with the 1770 medalion, a near perfect handle, and big 5/8" split nuts, (except for the 1/2" nose screw), which has the R Groves & Sons blade stamp
Thank-you Kiwi, It is a silly and elementary mistake that I should not be making at this stage in my saw collecting career. Of course the 1770 medallion is Groves and Sons. It could be nothing else. Never mind. Fred
Oxley, Williamson etc A nice collection, Fred! May I offer some thoughts (a bit late)? The Williamson is the same as one I have - a fairly typical London saw of c1880, I reckon, but I can't find the man - he joins a long list of "Unidentified". There was a Williamson in London from 1892-1919+, but the several of his I've seen all have an address as well, and are etched, not struck. I suppose it could be one of his early efforts, as his first description was "sawmaker" - whatever that might mean in London. I've also found J Henry Butler, in the list of retail ironmongers in 1896, at 55 Victoria St W'ham'ton. I'm guessing he bought in, and at the most struck his mark (not difficult on a keyhole saw). Can't find Oxley, although I'd put my money on him being a dealer/ironmonger as well, maybe post 1920 (from the style of the mark). The Bradshaw again I would guess is a Sheffield second (or worse) quality offering. with the name (P Bradshaw??) being culled from somewhere or other by a bigger maker. Other possibilities might be Thomas S Bradshaw, file makers in the White's 1901; files and saws go together big time, and he might have had some saws made for him to widen his sales (but why P.?). Harry Bradshaw, of Arthur St is a "wood cutter" in my 1901 White, and his address is a residential area, so he must have been employed somewhere else. Nice selection, Fred!