broken anvil ?

[harvest]

hello all .  im from eastern pa and directed to this website from a engine collector in nj who said possibly someone here can help identify an old broken anvil that was in my family for many yrs .  i always myself wanted to figure out what the maker and date of mfg would have been . in my travels over the yrs i never came across a similar anvil . here are a couple pics i have to share . pic 4 shows some lettering on its side . possibly someone can help identify , thank you

[John McPherson]

Coachsmith's anvil, a not uncommon pattern in the trade back when horses were the primary means of transportation. There were many English makers of these, most not well marked. Gently cleaning the sides with a stiff hand brush with soap and water, then rubbing with chalk may reveal some more markings. Even pictures of the bottom and under the horn may help. Mouseholes tend to have a sharp crease like the prow of a ship.

[Mark Ling]

so what was that thing sticking of the side for???

                                                                                           Littleblacksmith

[Nobody Special]

You've got more letters there. English wrought iron anvil, whatever the brand. Hit it with a wire brush or a non-knotted wire brush and try tilting it a bit and rubbing flour or baby powder onto the sides. William Fosters were one of the most common imports and are well known for having breaks at the welds on the heels or horns, but it is by no means exclusive to that brand.

[harvest]

john, i think ya nailed it by looking at that diagram, is that diagram dated 1906?         nobody, i can make out the last 3 letters "ELD"  as in Sheffield?     i will spend a little more time to look for more identity on the anvil .   will try the flour .     i guess this is not an anvil from the 1800's ?   again thank you members.

[odblacksmith]

33 minutes ago, littleblacksmith said:

so what was that thing sticking of the side for???

                                                                                           Littleblacksmith

I have seen them used when punching the eye of an axe blank billet(the part that makes up the bit rests on the shelf and the material to be punched is still resting on the anvil face),but seems like a darned handy thing to have for supporting work with offsets and whatever else a smith could run into.

 

[harvest]

od, thank you.

[odblacksmith]

No problem just don't quote me that thats' the INTENDED use lol. But i have seen them used for axes.

[John McPherson]

It is for shaping all those little U shaped brackets and thingamabobs required for "ironing out" a wagon, that the anvil face is too wide to make the second bend.

[ThomasPowers]

making clips---and anything else the smith could use it for.     1906 is probably getting pretty late for that type of anvil as the use of wagons started to decline; especially hand built ones over factory built ones.  I'd not be shy of saying it was probably made between 1850 and 1900

[John McPherson]

The coachsmith type was made by most English firms as early as the late 1700's, and as you can see in that ad, still available as late as 1906.

I have a Wilkinson in the same condition that I traded a vise for.