Thread: Our Own Daisy?

What is with this name? A seemingly good razor with such a name! Does anyone remember the movie TOMBSTONE? Doc Holliday used that word in context of perhaps historical authenticity. Could that be why Hand Forged Razor Co., Sheffield, used "Daisy" for marketing? "Daisy" might be the source of the word "Doozy"=something extraordinary.???

Please tell me more of this razor species. It does not seem to have been honed. It had surface rust and was very hard to open. I am curious-a good story here would add provenance, not to mention embellishing a conversation piece. Thanks, RRR

Can you give a close up of the blade and tang markings.
Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett also used a similar name with their "Our Daisy's" # 444.

For now, I do not have a close-up camera. The only tang markings are: Hand Forged Razor Sheffield. "Our Own Daisy" and "hollow ground razor" are inscribed on the blade. No maker name on the box either.

I tried to make the Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett connection to no avail.

maybe it was once a gift to someone named daisy

During a certain period a few makers put saying like that on their razors. I know Torey and W&B did and I know there are others.

IIRC, a lot of the dialog in Tombstone is supposedly accurate to how people of that time period talked.

In today's language what might be "one sweet razor" would have been referred to as "a daisy of a razor" ~150 years ago.


*Daisy of a note: In searching for a source for historical slang and the word "daisy", I came across an article by a gentleman that explains both the terms "huckleberry" and "daisy" from Tombstone. I then looked at the author of the piece: our very own Lawson Stone! Hopefully he'll find some time to chime in, as he probably has access to the slang dictionaries I was looking for.
I'm Your Huckleberry - Tombstone History Archives
(reference to "daisy" is in the last paragraph)

Originally Posted by timberrr59

What is with this name? A seemingly good razor with such a name! Does anyone remember the movie TOMBSTONE? Doc Holliday used that word in context of perhaps historical authenticity. Could that be why Hand Forged Razor Co., Sheffield, used "Daisy" for marketing? "Daisy" might be the source of the word "Doozy"=something extraordinary.???

Please tell me more of this razor species. It does not seem to have been honed. It had surface rust and was very hard to open. I am curious-a good story here would add provenance, not to mention embellishing a conversation piece. Thanks, RRR

Actually no connection at all. There are fun sources for this kind of information:

Dictionary of American Slang: Second Supplemented Edition (Crowell, 1975)

Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, (3 Vols) Random House, 1994.

The term "daisy" was a short-lived slang expression for "the best in its class" used in the early 1880's and out of fashion by 1890. I just re-posted an old blog entry on this…

I'm Your Huckleberry-Ain't that a Daisy

I should have noted-the term "doozy" seems a corruption of the term "duesey" which was short for "Duesenberg" a brand of automobile in the early 20th century. I don't recall the term "doozy" being much before World War I.

I cleaned this dandy 1880-ish razor some more and honed, polished, and stropped her for a first shave. She proved up very well. Gave me a peach of a shave, but needs a pinch of extra honing at the toe. I recon this is the only hollow ground blade I really fancy. No noise and no nicks to boot. It is nice to work a razor with substantial scales. Much obliged for the interest and kindly feedback. I am fixing to start using some of that archaic slang just to ape a persona of the 19th Century. It would require a right smart amount of effort, but commencing that is old hat now.

My father talked like that. He was born in 1898, but he never mastered straight razor shaving. I own the brass King Gillette double-edge he was issued in 1918. It wll make blood appear like the dickens!...

Originally Posted by timberrr59

...to ape a persona of the 19th Century

or the 21st century in rural oklahoma