Thread: Need help, John C. Cockmill

Just wondering if any of our wonderful razor historians have any info on this razor I just picked up. It is a 6/8 wedge made by John C. Cockmill. I know it was made pre 1890, but know nothing else of the maker. Any help would be awesome. Sorry for the bad pics.

I think you'll find it is 'Cockhill' - John Creswick Cockhill, born 1826. He married Elizabeth Pitts in 1856, and died in February 1903. He had his own business in 1855 as a razor manufacturer, in 1861 he worked from Eldon Street, and the next year sees him in Duke Street and Porter Street.
In 1868 he was in Charles Street.
In the 1870s he was at Brookhill. He is recorded in the Census of 1871 as living with wife Elizabeth, although some sources say she died in 1861. If he remarried, he found a wife with the same name - saves confusion, I guess!
The 1881 census sees him recorded as a Razor Manufacturer employing 7 men and 4 boys. Still living with Elizabeth.
The 1891 census still shows him as a razor manufacturer and still living with wife Elizabeth.
The 1901 census shows him as both Cutler and Razor Manufacturer, and still living with wife Elizabeth.

When he was at the Beehive works in Duke Street and Porter Street in 1862 his corporate mark was 'BEEHIVE' - a mark which once belonged to John Hinchcliffe. He later adopted a picture of a dragon as his trademark.

Regards,
Neil

Thank you so much for the info Neil. I knew that someone around here would know who the maker was. The stamp was kind of hard to read, so I was unsure of the makers name. No matter what, I know that once it is cleaned up, it will be an exceptional shaver. Thanks again.

I would also bet that if you very carefully inspect the scales you'll find a little crowsfoot symbol and a few letters. (The Crowsfoot looks sort of like a peace symbol without the circle in some representations).

It will be a small mark and nowhere nearly as deep a stamp as those numbers.

The numbers mark it as a military razor, most likely WWI. It was donated to the war effort, reconditioned by a master cutler in Sheffield and fitted up with new scales that had the military ID of the soldier it was given to (or some approximation thereof).

This is the razor that brought me to this site! I have a similar one but my number is in a different place.

That's nice! I wonder if there is a way to find out who the soldier was who used it?

Nice find! The number branding, I have been told, is the mark of a military issue razor.

Richard

That would be very cool! I also wonder what the 1 C C or I C C means. Does anyone know which country was issuing these razors?

1885 to 1908
Most serial numbers can be traced through the war office

This just a semi educated guess. It is a British issue army razor. The numbers could be the regimental number of the person it was issued to. If you went to a different regiment you got one of their numbers. That was before people were issued universal serial numbers that did not change no matter what unit you were in/assigned to.

The combination letters and number may be the designation of the issuing regiment.

Bob