Hibbard Spencer & Bartlett Co.

Gentlemen - I recently purchased a very nice old razor of this manufacturer. It has stamped on the tang the following numbers:
1845. Might there be someone familiar with this razor that can explain what it means? I originally thought it was a date it was made, but since the company wasn't formed for ten years after that date, and in fact, wasn't to be called by those three names for about another forty years after 1845. I'm thinking it might be a serial no., but that would be out of the ordinary. Any ideas?

do you have pics?

I don't presently...I will have my girlfriend take some pics of it tomorrow and will put them up. One thing about it is, the numbers are significant, if you get my meaning. I mean to say, they're not hidden or discretely placed; they're meant to be seen. After turning it over in my head, I came to a couple of conclusions: maybe they bought the blanks from an out of business manufacturer(?) or maybe they just simply number their production. I figured if someone else out there has a razor of the same make and they have a similar number on it, well, that'll eat least explain a little.

Hibbert Spencer and Bartlett were from 1855 til 1960. A pic is very telling! As High-end retailers, They sold all kinds of stuff with their name on it, not just razors! No telling who made it or when, but a pic will narrow it down. They had quite the razor catalogue back then.