Little Misters?

[val brierley 11]

Yes Lol was my Grandad he was married to Edna, he will have always been in the pub :-)

 

Jenny and Organgrinder. How did you know them, did you live in the area?

 

hi I used to deliver Edna our eggs fresh from our farm...I always remember her daughter in law having a monkey.It used to roam free, scared me !! It was in the late 1960s. I also worked with a teacher whose name was Dixie she said she was Edna's niece. I am married to Len Scaife

[hobinfoot 25]

My granddad was a little mister he made scissors and had a workshop near Glossop Rd my mum used to take me there to watch him at work when I was little.

[Da link went 10]

Is he really? He used to have a workshop on Brocco Street, iirc. Another of my jobs was the book rep for Hallamshire Press and we printed Stan's book. He always had a waiting list for his pocket knives longer than his arm. He once told me that he'd never be able to retire because he'd be working on orders till Doomsday! Top bloke!

 

What a crying shame it is that the Goverment would never fund master craftsmen like Mr Shaw to take apprentices on to teach them what is a dying art.

 

It isn't the Government job to fund apprentices, surely a craftsman can do that, I served my apprenticeship without government aid. Why is it many people want the government to organise thier lives.

[AEGALE 10]

My granddad was a little mister he made scissors and had a workshop near Glossop Rd my mum used to take me there to watch him at work when I was little.

 

Hi did your granddad have any help IE: 'scissor dresser' as that was what my mum was.

[hobinfoot 25]

Hi did your granddad have any help IE: 'scissor dresser' as that was what my mum was.

I'm sorry but I don't know he died 50 years ago but he could well have had scissor dresser working with him.

[pjkay 10]

Stan Shaw is still working at Kelham Island Museum making knives.

I had a friend called Harry Yeardley..He was a little mister...Worked long hours and was fitting the old style bone handles to cutlery for one of the big firms....He was an Olympic Drinker ans spent his weekends Hiking in Derbyshire...Of course they finished in the pub,,,Barrel at Bretton or the Monsal Head were two of the ones that come to mind.. The Barrel was owned by Fred and Phyliis Feetham... They were ex club acts and used to sing in the pub after and during time called which lasted for hours....Harry died years ago after I left Sheffield I think/// His wife Jean worked at Chestermans??

Time goes by and eras finish...memories are there forever.

[biggsy 10]

There are still cutlers in Sheff that hand make knives, Taylors Eye Witness knives are still on the go!!

 

I have a nice cased clip point that was made by Russel White

 

They sell for over a hundred quid in the Sheffield shop, I won mine in a raffle at a custom knife meeting in the fat cat a few years ago!!

 

 

Taylors Clip point

 

 

Open

 

I believe that Trevor Ablett is still making knives too

 

 

 

Biggsy

[RobertDay 11]

More Little Mesters still working in Sheffield -

 

Trevor Ablett - makes fine pocket knives

Reg Cooper - makes Bowie knives, hunting knives, sgian dubhs and similar

 

Both appeared on Michael Portillo's Great British Railway Journeys - there's a YouTube video of this here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o19CmqPAywk (view from about 19mins 30 seconds into the programme).

 

Trevor also had a good set of publicity via Guardian newspaper which is still online here -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/jan/23/make-a-sheffield-pocket-knife

and followed up here -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/audioslideshow/2010/jan/26/sheffield-pocket-knife-trevor-ablett