A moulding plane is a specialised plane used for making the complex shapes found in wooden mouldings that are used to decorate furniture or other wooden object. Traditionally, moulding planes were blocks of wear resistant hardwood, often beech or maple, which were worked to the shape of the intended moulding. The blade, or iron was likewise formed to the intended moulding profile and secured in the body of the plane with a wooden wedge. A traditional cabinetmakers shop might have many, perhaps hundreds, of moulding planes for the full range of work to be performed. Large crown mouldings required planes of six or more inches in width, which demanded great strength to push and often had additional peg handles on the sides, allowing the craftsman's apprentice or other worker to pull the plane ahead of the master who guided it. All we known about Richard Routledge is that he was a tool maker and retailer that operated a business at either 23 or 64 Bull St Birmingham between 1869 to sometime in the early 20th century. There are many of his tools including decorative moulding planes of all sizes and designs for sale around the world and that his tools in particular moulding planes are well sought after by collectors of vintage tools. A vintage tool made by an early tool manufacturer Richard Routledge, this item was made commercially for firms and individuals that worked in wood and needed a tool that could produce an ornamental finish to timber. The tool was used before routers and spindle moulders came into use after World War ll, a time when to produce a decorative moulding for a piece of furniture, door trims etc. or other items had to be accomplished using hand tools and in particular one of these types of planes. These profiled planes came in various shapes and sizes to achieve a decorative finish. A significant tool from the mid to late 19th century by a known maker that today is quite rare and sought after by collectors. It gives us a snapshot of how furniture and other decorative finishes were created on timber by the use of hand tools. Tools that were themselves handmade shows the craftsmanship used during this time not only to make a tool such as the subject item but also the craftsmanship needed to produce a decorative finish that was needed to be made for any timber item. Moulding Plane Side Bead 5/8 type with a single Box 5/8" "Routledge Birmingham " also inscribed "J.A.S. Burden" (owner of the plane)flagstaff hill, warrnambool, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, great ocean road, plane, moulding, routledge, side bead, single box, moulding plane, richard routledge, jas burten

In 1792 John Manners had set up a workshop making woodworking planes at 14 Saracens Lane Glasgow. He also had employed an apprentice Alexander Mathieson (1773-1851). But in the following year at Saracen's Lane, the 1841 census describes Alexander Mathieson as a master plane-maker now at 38 Saracen Lane with his son Thomas Adam working with him as a journeyman plane-maker. Presumably, Alexander must have taken over the premises and business of John Manners. Now that the business had Thomas Adam Mathieson working with his father it gradually grew and became more diversified, and it is recorded at the time by the Post-Office Glasgow Annual Directory that by 1847-1848 Alexander Mathieson was a “plane, brace, bit, auger & edge tool maker” In 1849 the firm of James & William Stewart at 65 Nicolson Street, Edinburgh was taken over and Thomas was put in charge of the business, trading under the name Thomas A. Mathieson & Co. as plane and edge-tool makers. Thomas's company went on to acquire the Edinburgh edge-tool makers “Charles & Hugh McPherson” and took over their premises in Gilmore Street. In the Edinburgh directory of 1856/7, the business is recorded as being Alexander Mathieson & Son, plane and edge-tool makers at 48 Nicolson Street and Paul's Work, Gilmore Street Edinburgh. The 1851 census Alexander is recorded as working as a tool and plane-maker employing eight men. Later that year Alexander died and his son Thomas took over the business. Under the heading of an edge-tool maker in the 1852/3 Post-Office Glasgow Annual Directory the firm is now listed as Alexander Mathieson & Son, with further entries as "turning-lathe and vice manufacturers". By the early 1850s, the business had moved to 24 Saracen Lane. The directory for 1857/8 records that the firm had moved again only a few years later to East Campbell Street, off the Gallowgate area, and that through further diversification was also manufacturing coopers' and tinmen's tools. The ten-yearly censuses report the firm's growth in 1861 stating that Thomas was a tool manufacturer employing 95 men and 30 boys; in 1871 he had 200 men working for him and in 1881 300 men. By 1899 the firm had been incorporated as Alexander Mathieson & Sons Ltd, even though only Alexander's son Thomas appears ever to have joined the firm so the company was still in his fathers' name. In September 1868 Thomas Mathieson put a notice in the newspapers of the Sheffield & Rotherham Independent and the Sheffield Daily Telegraph stating that his firm had used the trade-mark of a crescent and star "for some time" and that "using or imitating the Mark would be proceeded against for infringement". The firm had acquired its interest in the crescent-and-star mark from the heirs of Charles Pickslay, the Sheffield cutler who had registered it with the Cutlers' Company in 1833 and had died in 1852. The year 1868 seems also to be the one in which the name Saracen Tool Works was first adopted; not only does it figure at the foot of the notice in the Sheffield press, it also makes its first appearance in the firm's entry in the Post-Office Glasgow Annual Directory in the 1868/9 edition. As Thomas Mathieson's business grew, so too did his involvement in local public life and philanthropy. One of the representatives of the third ward on the town council of Glasgow, he became a river bailie in 1868, a magistrate in 1870 and a preceptor of Hutcheson's Hospital in 1878. He had a passion for books and was an "ardent Ruskinian". He served on the committee handling the bequest for the setting up of the Mitchell Library in Glasgow. When he died at Coulter Maynes near Biggar in 1899, he left an estate worth £142,764.  Company's later years: Both Thomas's sons, James Harper and Thomas Ogilvie were involved in the continuing life of the firm. James followed in his father's footsteps in becoming a local public figure. He was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of the County of the City of Glasgow and was made a deacon of the Incorporation of the Hammermen of Glasgow in 1919. His brother Thomas Ogilvie was recorded as tool manufacturer and employer in the 1911 census. Thomas Ogilvie's son Thomas Alastair Sutherland Ogilvie Mathieson was born in 1908 took a rather different approach to engineering, however, by becoming a racing driver. In 1947 he wed the French film actress Mila Parély. The firm had won many awards at world fairs for their goods. At the Great Exhibition, London, 1851. Prize medal for joiners' tools in the class of Cutlery & Edge Tools, Great London Exposition, 1862. Prize medal honoris causa. International Exhibition, Melbourne, 1880. Gold medal International Exhibition of Industry, Science and Art, Edinburgh, 1886. Prize medalThe firm of Alexander Mathieson & Son was one of the leading makers of hand tools in Scotland. Its success went hand in hand with the growth of the shipbuilding industries on the Firth of Clyde in the nineteenth century and the emergence of Glasgow as the "second city of the Empire". It also reflected the firm's skill in responding to an unprecedented demand for quality tools by shipyards, cooperages and other industries, both locally and far and wide.Smoothing Plane coffin type reinforcing screws in body complete with iron and wedge Maker Alex Mathieson and Son flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

A moulding plane is a specialised plane used for making the complex shapes found in wooden mouldings that are used to decorate furniture or other wooden object. Traditionally, moulding planes were blocks of wear resistant hardwood, often beech or maple, which were worked to the shape of the intended moulding. The blade, or iron was likewise formed to the intended moulding profile and secured in the body of the plane with a wooden wedge. A traditional cabinetmakers shop might have many, perhaps hundreds, of moulding planes for the full range of work to be performed. Large crown mouldings required planes of six or more inches in width, which demanded great strength to push and often had additional peg handles on the sides, allowing the craftsman's apprentice or other worker to pull the plane ahead of the master who guided it. All we known about Robert Bewley and his successors is that they made planes in Leeds, England, from about 1785 to 1847. There are many of his tools including decorative moulding planes of all sizes and designs for sale around the world and that his moulding planes are well sought after by collectors of vintage tools.A vintage tool made by a known maker, this item was made commercially for firms and individuals who worked in wood and needed a tool that could produce a ornamental finish to timber. These profiled planes came in various shapes and sizes to achieve a decorative finish. This item is a significant tool from the mid to late 19th century that today is quite rare and sought after by collectors. It gives us a snapshot of how furniture and other decorative finishes were created on timber by the use of hand tools. Round Moulding plane number 8 Stamped Bewley Leeds (maker)flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

A moulding plane is a specialised plane used for making the complex shapes found in wooden mouldings that are used to decorate furniture or other wooden object. Traditionally, moulding planes were blocks of wear resistant hardwood, often beech or maple, which were worked to the shape of the intended moulding. The blade, or iron was likewise formed to the intended moulding profile and secured in the body of the plane with a wooden wedge. A traditional cabinetmakers shop might have many, perhaps hundreds, of moulding planes for the full range of work to be performed. Large crown mouldings required planes of six or more inches in width, which demanded great strength to push and often had additional peg handles on the sides, allowing the craftsman's apprentice or other worker to pull the plane ahead of the master who guided it. All we known about Richard Routledge is that he was a tool maker and retailer that operated a business at either 23 or 64 Bull St Birmingham between 1869 to sometime in the early 20th century. There are many of his tools including decorative moulding planes of all sizes and designs for sale around the world and that his tools in particular moulding planes are well sought after by collectors of vintage tools. A vintage tool made by a known maker, this item was made commercially for firms and individuals that worked in wood and needed a tool that could produce a ornamental finish to timber. The tool was used before routers and spindle moulders came into use to produce a decorative moulding for a piece of furniture, door trims etc or other timber items that had to be accomplished by using hand tools and in particular one of these types of planes. Profiled planes came in various shapes and sizes to achieve the required decorative finish. A significant tool from the mid to late 19th century that today is sought after by collectors. It gives us a snapshot of how furniture and other decorative finishes were created on timber by the use of hand tools. Plane, Moulding, HollowI M and Denham stamped one end (owners)flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

A moulding plane is a specialised plane used for making the complex shapes found in wooden mouldings that are used to decorate furniture or other wooden object. Traditionally, moulding planes were blocks of wear resistant hardwood, often beech or maple, which were worked to the shape of the intended moulding. The blade, or iron was likewise formed to the intended moulding profile and secured in the body of the plane with a wooden wedge. A traditional cabinetmakers shop might have many, perhaps hundreds, of moulding planes for the full range of work to be performed. Large crown mouldings required planes of six or more inches in width, which demanded great strength to push and often had additional peg handles on the sides, allowing the craftsman's apprentice or other worker to pull the plane ahead of the master who guided it.A vintage tool made by an unknown maker, this item was made commercially for firms and individuals that worked in wood and needed a tool that could produce a ornamental finish to timber. The tool was used before routers and spindle moulders came into use to produce a decorative moulding for a piece of furniture, door trims etc. or other timber items that had to be accomplished by using hand tools and in particular one of these types of planes. Profiled planes came in various shapes and sizes to achieve the required decorative finish. A significant tool from the mid to late 19th century that today is sought after by collectors. It gives us a snapshot of how furniture and other decorative finishes were created on timber by the use of hand tools. Tongue and groove match plane with metal strip affixed with 5 screws Mc Vicar stamped on end and No 2. flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

John Wilson Dryburgh Snr started plane making in Dundee in 1837 at 42 Murraygate until 1854 when he and his family moved to Toronto Canada. He continued plane making in Canada as did his sons, notably was his son John Dryburgh Jnr who began making planes at an early age and by sixteen years of age around the 1880s was a skilled maker, having been trained by his father, most likely by the time the family came to Canada. Three years later, the entire family had moved to a farm in Northeast Hope, near Stratford, Ontario. John Jnr. would continue in Northeast Hope until 1887, has become the firm's principal plane maker from 1876 onwards when John Jnr had moved to a farm property near Bright, Ontario. He was regarded as a very skilled toolmaker and had made high-quality tools in his youth. J Dryburgh Jnr's plane-making career would likely have spanned more than 55 years.A tool made by a significant and early maker of moulding planes, his moulding planes and that of his father are highly sought after by collectors today and the efforts of John Wilson Dryburgh and his son John Jnr give us a snapshot into times past.Box type moulding planeJ Dryburgh maker also stamped P Steven (owner) size 3/8''flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

A moulding plane is a specialised plane used for making the complex shapes found in wooden mouldings that are used to decorate furniture or other wooden object. Traditionally, moulding planes were blocks of wear resistant hardwood, often beech or maple, which were worked to the shape of the intended moulding. The blade, or iron was likewise formed to the intended moulding profile and secured in the body of the plane with a wooden wedge. A traditional cabinetmakers shop might have many, perhaps hundreds, of moulding planes for the full range of work to be performed. Large crown mouldings required planes of six or more inches in width, which demanded great strength to push and often had additional peg handles on the sides, allowing the craftsman's apprentice or other worker to pull the plane ahead of the master who guided it. All we known about John Ames is that he was a tool maker and retailer that operated a business in London early to mid 18th century. There are many of his tools including decorative moulding planes of all sizes and designs for sale around the world and that his tools in particular moulding planes are well sought after by collectors of vintage tools.A vintage tool made by a known maker, this item was made commercially for firms and individuals that worked in wood and needed a tool that could produce a ornamental finish to timber. The tool was used before routers and spindle moulders came into use after World War ll, a time when to produce a decorative moulding for a piece of furniture, door trims etc or other items had to be accomplished using hand tools and in particular one of these types of planes. These profiled planes came in various shapes and sizes to achieve a decorative finish. A significant tool from the early to mid 18th century that today is quite rare and sought after by collectors. It gives us a snapshot of how furniture and other decorative finishes were created on timber by the use of hand tools. Tools that were themselves hand made shows the craftsmanship used during this time not only to make a tool such as the subject item but also the craftsmanship needed to produce a decorative finish that was needed to be made for any timber item.Complex Moulding Plane J Heath (owner) stamped. No 6 opposite endflagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, plane moulding, moulding plane, plane, j heath, ames

A smoothing plane is typically used after the work piece has been flattened and trued by the other bench planes, such as the jack, fore, and joiner planes. Smoothing planes can also be used to remove marks left by woodworking machinery. When used effectively alongside other bench planes, the smoothing plane should only need a handful of passes removing shavings as fine as 0.002 inches (0.051 mm) or less. The work piece is then ready to be finished, or can be further refined with a card scraper or sandpaper. The smoothing plane is usually held with both hands, and used in a similar manner to the other bench planes. Though designed for smoothing, a smoothing plane can be used as an 'all-round' bench tool and for rougher work depending on how it is set up. Being smaller than other bench planes, the smoothing plane is better able to work on smaller work pieces and around obstructions. Since the 1700s wooden smoothing planes have predominantly been 'coffin shaped' wider in the middle and slightly rounded making them more manoeuvrable. It has also been claimed that the coffin design exposes more end grain, enabling the plane to better adjust to changes in humidity. Henry Boker Maker: Heinrich "Henry" Böker of Reimschied-Solingen, Germany and his family was making tools in the 17th century. In 1829 Hermann and Robert Böker added sabres to the company's offerings, in 1837 they emigrated to New York City and established a firm to import German cutlery. H. Boker sabres would be eventually supplied to some American soldiers during the Civil War. Heinrich Boker in 1869 , a relative of Hermann and Robert, established a cutlery firm in Solingen, a centre of industry and cutting tool manufacturing in Germany. The company became a leader in the manufacture of razors, scissors and eating utensils. As early as 1900 the majority of tools produced by Boker were distributed in the U.S. market by the New York branch of the family, and pocket knives became the company's most important product line. During WWII the Solingen factory was destroyed and all the equipment and inventory was lost. After the war the factory was rebuilt and the company resumed operations, but in the early '60s the company was sold to the scissors manufacturer Wiss & Sons, and in the early 70s Wiss sold out to Cooper Industries. At some point Heinrich Boker adopted the Americanised version of his name, Henry Boker and was used as a brand name for the company's products. A vintage smoothing plane of the Bismark pattern made by Henry Boker the this plane is now regarded as a collectors item and is an example of vintage woodworking tools used in the manufacture of wooden products.Smoothing Plane Bismark design. Blade marked Henry Bokerflagstaff hill, warrnambool, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, smoothing plane, heinrich boker, carpenters tool, cabinet makers tool

This Jack plane is used for general purposes such as shaving off surplus wood to bring a piece of work down to size and plane the edges of a door to smooth them off. This plane is an example of the tools used by ship builders in the maritime trade from the 19th century to the present day.Jack Plane; a large oblong shape with an aperture at one end, a long wooden guard that protects the sharp metal blade, and a saw like handle at other end. It is stained a red-brown colour.flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, warrnambool, maritime museum, maritime village, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, wood working, wood working plane, wood working tool, jack plane, plane, wood plane, general purpose plane, tool, builders tool, carpenter's tool, ship builder's tool, maritime trade

J.E. Bleckmann were German Blade makers, registry shows Bleckmann (1899, No. 37190):J.E.Bleckmann, Solingen, registry class 9b). As well as blades for wood working tools they were also sword makers (used in American Civil War), Bayonet makers 1871-1918 and also pocket cutlery (pocket knives) as per advertisement 1907.This wood plane holds historical importance as carpentry tools such as this would have been used in the construction of local homes, outbuildings, furniture. It represents an era before power tools. Investigation is ongoing as to ownership and specific use in the area. Hand made wooden hand plane with metal blade. Carpentry tool from 19th century1/38 / 34 mm stamped into wood on front edge of plane. Metal Blade inscribed "J.E. BLECKMANN/ WARRANTED / CAST STEEL / SOLINGEN/GERMANY"tool, blade makers, hand plane, woodworking.

A spokeshave was made with a wooden body and metal cutting blade. With industrialization metal bodies displaced wood in mass-produced tools. Spokeshaves can be made from flat-bottom, concave, or convex soles, depending on the type of job to be performed. They can include one or more sharpened notches along which the wooden shaft is pulled in order to shave it down to the proper diameter. Historically, spokeshave blades were made of metal, and the body and handles were wood. Unlike a drawknife, but like a plane, spokeshaves typically have a sole plate that fixes the angle of the blade relative to the surface being worked. By the twentieth-century metal handles and detachable blades had become the most common. A convex, wooden, variant of the spokeshave is called a travisher; at one time mostly used in chairmaking.A tool of the cooper and other woodworking tradesmen that has been in use since the making of barrels and wooden buckets for hundreds of years without much change to the design or how the tool is used.Spokeshave, with two wooden handles on either side. Noneflagstaff hill, warrnambool, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, coopers tools, spokeshave, barrel making, wood plane

A topping plane is part of a set of cooper’s tools used by a cooper. A cooper uses a topping plane, also known as a 'sun plane', to give a level surface to the 'chime' which is the bevelled edge at the top and bottom of a cask.A tool used by coopers for hundreds of years that has not changed in design during that time and is still in use today. Item at this time cannot be associated with an historical event, person or place, provenance is unknown, item assessed as a collection asset as it is believed to have been produced before 1950. Coopers Topping Plane, wooden with metal blade & metal plate on base. Makers mark on blade unreadablewarrnambool, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, coopers topping plane, coopers, topping plane, sun plane, coopers tools, wood plane

This plane, used for shaving or shaping materials such as wood, is a Stanley No 78 model. The Stanley Tool Works was a business originally established in U.S.A. in the 1840s. In 1937 Stanley Tool Works set up in Sheffield, England. In 2010 the company merged with Black and Decker and still operates today. Planes are still used today in woodworking.This item has no known local significance but is retained as an example of a tradesman’s tool from the past. This is a metal tool with a solid base, a large handle, one screw and two wing nuts. It is somewhat greasy. ‘Stanley No. 78’ ‘Patent D. 6-7-10’tradesmen’s tools, warrnambool, wood plane

A spokeshave was made with a wooden body and metal cutting blade. With industrialization metal bodies displaced wood in mass-produced tools. Spokeshaves can be made from flat-bottom, concave, or convex soles, depending on the type of job to be performed. They can include one or more sharpened notches along which the wooden shaft is pulled in order to shave it down to the proper diameter. Historically, spokeshave blades were made of metal, and the body and handles were wood. Unlike a drawknife, but like a plane, spokeshaves typically have a sole plate that fixes the angle of the blade relative to the surface being worked. By the twentieth-century metal handles and detachable blades had become the most common. A convex, wooden, variant of the spokeshave is called a travisher; at one time mostly used in chairmaking.A tool of the cooper and other woodworking tradesmen that has been in use since the making of barrels and wooden buckets for hundreds of years without much change to the design or how the tool is used.Spokeshave, with two wooden handles on either side. Noneflagstaff hill, warrnambool, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, coopers tools, spokeshave, barrel making, wood plane, wagon making, joiners tools, carpenter tools

Very old. Beech is the best wood for moulding planes since the early 1700s when other woods were passed over in preference for the straight-grained non-problematic beech wood. The blades are made of steel.Used by carpenters and / or cabinet makers in the Kiewa Valley.Shaping wooden (possibly beech or maple wood) planes bundled up. Each makes a different shape eg. nose, tail, concave. Ref. Pages 20 and 21 Tools For All Trades Catalogue.wooden planes, woodworking, shaping plane

A spokeshave is a tool used to shape and smooth wooden rods and shafts - often for use as wheel spokes, chair legs . Spokeshaves can be made from flat-bottom, concave, or convex soles, depending on the type of job to be performed. Spokeshaves can include one or more sharpened notches along which the wooden shaft is pulled in order to shave it down to the proper diameter. Historically, spokeshave blades were made of metal, whilst the body and handles were wood. An early design consisted of a metal blade with a pair of tangs to which the wooden handles were attached. Like a plane, spokeshaves typically have a sole plate that fixes the angle of the blade relative to the surface being worked. By the twentieth century metal handles and detachable blades had become the most common. Preston Tools was an English tool making company also known as E.P. Tools and Edward Preston Tools. Edward Preston Sr. (1805-1883) was first listed as a plane maker at 77 Lichfield Street in the 1833 Birmingham Directory but it is believed he may have started business there as early as 1825. Around 1850 his son, Edward Preston Jr. (1835-1908) left school to join his father's business and he later started up his own "wood and brass spirit level manufactory" at 97-1/2 Lichfield Street by 1864. By 1866 Edward Jr. had added planes, routers, joiners, coach, gun, cabinet and carpenters tools to his line, and the following year he moved his shop from his father's address and relocated to 26 Newton Street, before moving again to a much larger premises at 22-24 Whittall Street. This later became the office and factory of Edward Preston and Sons, who were forced to liquidate in 1934, due mainly to the Great Depression and mismanagement of the company. The plane making concern was sold to the Sheffield firm of C. & J. Hampton, who had subsequently merged in 1932 with Record Ridgeway Ltd.An ornate steel spokeshave wood plane with an adjustable screw.PRESTONS PATENTwoodwork, tools, spokeshave, moorabbin, cheltenham, bentleigh, early settlers, pioneers, market gardeners, woodplanes, craftwork, bicycle wheels, furniture, cabinetmaking, cartwheels, wagons, drays, preston edward, preston tools ltd

Early settlers in Moorabbin Shire were self reliant and made and repaired their own equipment for kitchen,dairy, farm, horses, carts using various tools . Among the early settlers were blacksmiths who made tools for the other settlers who were establishing the homes, market gardens, farms, orchards and various businesses. These wood planes are typical of the type made and used by early settlers in Moorabbin Shire c18802 handmade wood planes with blades. b) has 3cm groove for molding wood planes, spanners, early settlers, market gardeners, builders, blacksmiths, tools, building equipment, hammers, moorabbin shire, bentleigh, mckinnon, highett, cheltenham, mcewan james pty ltd, melbourne, bunnings pty ltd

Moulding plane - hollow. Maker Routledge Owner JAS Burden. Stamped 61 White wood planeflagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

In 1792 John Manners had set up a workshop making woodworking planes at 14 Saracens Lane Glasgow. He also had employed an apprentice Alexander Mathieson (1773-1851). But in the following year at Saracen's Lane, the 1841 census describes Alexander Mathieson as a master plane-maker now at 38 Saracen Lane with his son Thomas Adam working with him as a journeyman plane-maker. Presumably, Alexander must have taken over the premises and business of John Manners.  Now that the business had Thomas Adam Mathieson working with his father it gradually grew and became more diversified, and it is recorded at the time by the Post-Office Glasgow Annual Directory that by 1847/8 Alexander Mathieson was a "plane, brace, bit, auger & edge-tool maker". In 1849 the firm of James & William Stewart at 65 Nicolson Street, Edinburgh was taken over and Thomas was put in charge of the business, trading under the name Thomas A. Mathieson & Co. as plane and edge-tool makers. Thomas's company went on to acquire the Edinburgh edge-tool makers “Charles & Hugh McPherson” and took over their premises in Gilmore Street. In the Edinburgh directory of 1856/7, the business is recorded as being Alexander Mathieson & Son, plane and edge-tool makers at 48 Nicolson Street and Paul's Work, Gilmore Street Edinburgh. The 1851 census Alexander is recorded as working as a tool and plane-maker employing eight men. Later that year Alexander died and his son Thomas took over the business. Under the heading of an edge-tool maker in the 1852/3 Post-Office Glasgow Annual Directory the firm is now listed as Alexander Mathieson & Son, with further entries as "turning-lathe and vice manufacturers". By the early 1850s, the business had moved to 24 Saracen Lane. The directory for 1857/8 records that the firm had moved again only a few years later to East Campbell Street, off the Gallowgate area, and that through further diversification was also manufacturing coopers' and tinmen's tools. The ten-yearly censuses report the firm's growth in 1861 stating that Thomas was a tool manufacturer employing 95 men and 30 boys; in 1871 he had 200 men working for him and in 1881 300 men. By 1899 the firm had been incorporated as Alexander Mathieson & Sons Ltd, even though only Alexander's son Thomas appears ever to have joined the firm so the company was still in his fathers' name. In September 1868 Thomas Mathieson put a notice in the newspapers of the Sheffield & Rotherham Independent and the Sheffield Daily Telegraph stating that his firm had used the trade-mark of a crescent and star "for some time" and that "using or imitating the Mark would be proceeded against for infringement". The firm had acquired its interest in the crescent-and-star mark from the heirs of Charles Pickslay, the Sheffield cutler who had registered it with the Cutlers' Company in 1833 and had died in 1852. The year 1868 seems also to be the one in which the name Saracen Tool Works was first adopted; not only does it figure at the foot of the notice in the Sheffield press, it also makes its first appearance in the firm's entry in the Post-Office Glasgow Annual Directory in the 1868/9 edition. As Thomas Mathieson's business grew, so too did his involvement in local public life and philanthropy. One of the representatives of the third ward on the town council of Glasgow, he became a river bailie in 1868, a magistrate in 1870 and a preceptor of Hutcheson's Hospital in 1878. He had a passion for books and was an "ardent Ruskinian". He served on the committee handling the bequest for the setting up of the Mitchell Library in Glasgow. When he died at Coulter Maynes near Biggar in 1899, he left an estate worth £142,764.  Company's later years: Both Thomas's sons, James Harper and Thomas Ogilvie were involved in the continuing life of the firm. James followed in his father's footsteps in becoming a local public figure. He was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of the County of the City of Glasgow and was made a deacon of the Incorporation of the Hammermen of Glasgow in 1919. His brother Thomas Ogilvie was recorded as tool manufacturer and employer in the 1911 census. Thomas Ogilvie's son Thomas Alastair Sutherland Ogilvie Mathieson was born in 1908 took a rather different approach to engineering, however, by becoming a racing driver. In 1947 he wed the French film actress Mila Parély. The firm had won many awards at world fairs for their goods. At the Great Exhibition, London, 1851. Prize medal for joiners' tools in the class of Cutlery & Edge Tools, Great London Exposition, 1862. Prize medal honoris causa. International Exhibition, Melbourne, 1880. Gold medal International Exhibition of Industry, Science and Art, Edinburgh, 1886. Prize medalThe firm of Alexander Mathieson & Sons was one of the leading makers of hand tools in Scotland. Its success went hand in hand with the growth of the shipbuilding industries on the Firth of Clyde in the nineteenth century and the emergence of Glasgow as the "second city of the Empire". It also reflected the firm's skill in responding to an unprecedented demand for quality tools by shipyards, cooperage's and other industries, both locally and far and wide.Spirit level, brass in ebony wooden casing.Has "18C Warranted" stamped on barrel.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, spirit level, level, mathieson of glasgow, builders level, spirit level, alexander mathieson & sons, tool maker, wood working plane, john manners, thomas adam mathieson, james & william stewart, james harper, thomas ogilvie, machine manufacturer

This small plane was used in the making of components for the ship model Sovereign of the Seas. It is part of a collection of objects used by Jim Williams, maker of fine ship models from about 1930-1955. Most of the components for the models, as well as many of the tools, were handmade by Jim Williams. Jim’s family has donated the ship model “Sovereign of the Seas” and many tools, accessories and documents used in the making of this and other ship models have been donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village. Ship model of HMS Sovereign of the Seas, scale model of 17th Century English war ship, was handmade and carved from plans, enclosed in airtight glass case. All components of that model, including even the smallest pulleys, were hand crafted using tools designed and made by Jim. Outstanding details include functional rigging and moving cannons. Please see our record 3732 of the mode Sovereign of the Seas for further details of the ship and the maker. This plane is connected with the hobby and skill of ship model making that has been crafted as a leisure activity for many generations. The hobby is often chosen by serving and retired mariners who appreciate the connection with maritime history. This plane was used by local Warrnambool man, Jim Williams, who was employed at Cramond and Dickson clothing store, and then at Fletcher Jones menswear for 27 years. It was used in making components for the model of the historic ship, the Sovereign of the Seas. The Sovereign of the Seas was a historic 17th century English war ship with important maritime heritage. Small metal plane with the number impressed in the heel “102”. This small plane is part of a collection of tools and accessories once used by Jim Williams, maker of a series of ship models 1930-1955 including “HMS Sovereign of the Seas”."102"flagstaff hill, warrnambool, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, jim williams, james bernard williams, ship model hobby, ship model tools, ship model making equipment, ship model making accessories, wood working tool, wood working plane, carpentry plane, sovereign of the sea, ship model, hobby, ship model tool, tool