Colonial anvil marked Powe

[victorforge]

Acquired another colonial anvil just south of Harrisburg, PA today. It’s marked Powe on the side. I’m wondering if its a Powell. Any idea when he started making anvils? 

[victorforge]

Update: No mention of anything similar in Anvils of America. My friend has a hornless double arch with the same marking. It seems the markings spell out Powell or something similar. I need to do some deep investigation into it’s origins. 

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

I would start with a search on Google like this.     powell anvil site:iforgeiron.com      that way if someone has posted about one it will show up, also use alternative spelling. I tried it and got 232 hits. Here is the first on the list.

https://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/63881-anyone-know-much-about-john-powell-anvils/

PS As an after thought I remembered this. With the absence of the pritchel hole, I would say it was made prior to about 1840.

 

I can't control the wind, all I can do is adjust my sails. ~ Semper Paratus

Edited June 25, 2023 by Irondragon ForgeClay Works
After thought PS:

[victorforge]

I already searched this site and found no meaningful information on John Powell other then the existence of later anvils. This anvil was likely made prior to 1780 due to the lack of a shelf. My guess would be early 1700’s based on the use of a simple center punch to create numbers for it’s stone weight. 
 

It was mentioned in another thread that Richard Postman knew of Powell anvils. Unfortunately, there’s no mention of them in Anvils of America. 

[victorforge]

I've done some research. This is what I've found, John Powell made anvils, vises, bellows, and forges. The earliest mention of him as an anvil works is in 1862. The location of the works is Oxford Street, Digbeth. I have a hypothesis. Isacc Hill was an anvil maker in Digbeth up until the 1850s. Richard Hill was an anvil maker around 1770 also located in Birmingham (where Digbeth is). My hypothesis is that John Powell may have worked for either of them and eventually purchased the anvil works from them. Anvil Fire has a picture of a sort of stake anvil marked "R Hill". If you look at the markings on my anvil, it bears the same R above the name.

[victorforge]

My hypothesis was correct. John Powell purchased Issac Hill's forge after his death. I would like to find out if Richard Hill was Issac Hill's father. I wonder if my anvil, having the mark of "R" seen on anvils marked "R Hill", was old stock that they stamped Powell over the Hill portion and sold it.

[victorforge]

“Ive done a bit of research into the Hill Family. Working backwards this is the business succession as  i have determined. Isaac Nash aquired from John Powell, John Powell aquired from CW Hill via bankruptcy. CW other brother Thomas aquired it from brother Isaac Hill jr via inheritance. Isaac Hill jr aquired from father Isaac Hill Sr via Inheritance. 
Isaac hill sr came to Birmingham shortly before the birth of Jr in 1793 from Bruton, Somerset, England. Richard Hill was operating in Birmingham as early as 1778 with trouble expirencing multiple bankruptcies.
To summarize, I've not connected Richard, Isaac, or D Hill. Id like to see if R Powel is an ancestor of John  Powell.”

From Travis Elliot on facebook