Thread: J.C. Cissna, San Francisco 7/8 razor

Greetings everyone,

Here is a razor I picked up at a tag sale today for $5. The razor is marked J.C. CISSNA, SAN FRANCISCO. I have never heard of this brand before and it doesn’t seem to be in the database. Any info on the razor would be greatly appreciated. The razor is 7/8 at its widest. The horn scales have three pins at the wedge end but, unfortunately, one of the scales is broken there. The razor came in a nice Frederick Reynolds double razor coffin.

A quick buffing took off most of the surface rust, leaving the blade looking a little better.

Great find Chris! I hope someone has some info on the brand and maker

I'm certainly no expert, but if that name is not in the DB, I would guess that they were not the manufacturer. More likely they were a retailer of some description.

It certainly has the appearance of a Sheffield blade. If this is the case, and since the country of origin is not marked, then it must date before 1893.That's when the Taft Hartley Act made it mandatory for US imports to bear the country of origin.

Lots of speculation there, but I'd bet a side of fries that it's not far from the truth

Cheers,
Ian

Nothing in my Goin's Book of Cutlery Markings, and I can't find my Standard Guide to Razors (I put it away for safe keeping )

I did find an on-line copy of a 1854 San Francisco city directory. It has a listing for "Cissna, J. C. & Co. general importers, 99 Battery". It also has a listing that reads "Surdam M. 0. firm of J. C. Cissna & Co."

So, it looks like Ian was right on the mark. My razor was sold by a general importer in San Francisco. Unfortunately, that doesn't tell me who actually made it. Although the Sheffield connection would not surprise me.

As I mentioned, the razor came in a nice Frederick Reynolds' double razor coffin, so perhaps this is the correct box for the razor.