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EBRO, Alfred Williams, what does it mean?

EBRO, stamped on many Alfred Williams of Sheffield England knives, what does it mean? I have heard it was an importers stamp? Did any other knife maker use the EBRO stamp? Do any Alfred Williams knives show up without it? Just a few questions for you John concerning my latest purchase.

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by John McCain on May 21, 2016 at 12:42

Michael- some answers for you

1- The trademark EBRO comes from the Ebro River, the second largest river in Spain.

2-EBRO was a trademark of Adolph Kastor & sons of New York who purchased the trademark in Sheffield from Joseph Wostenholm & Sons, who also used the EBRO with the 2 Maltese crosses prior to selling it to A. Kastor. Alfred Williams speciality was selling knives to the US market, so his knives bore his name as well as the EBRO importer stamp.

3-In addition to Alfred Williams and Joseph Wostenholm, I found someone who owned a knife marked EBRO-Thomas Wilson-Shear Steel-Sheffield. Most recently, Puma sells an EBRO knife, minus the Maltese crosses.

4-Yes, Alfred Williams did make knives without the EBRO trademark-Notably, he made sailors rope knives for the US Navy.There were probably others, if they were not imported by Kastor.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Squier on May 23, 2016 at 17:00

Thanks John. Informative as usual. Do you have any idea which they made more of, the 5" bowie like mine or the 6" bowie?

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by John McCain on May 25, 2016 at 16:33

Michael- As to which they made more of, I have no idea and no clue as to where to begin looking for the information, short of finding a set of Adolph Kastor invoices or import records. BTW, your Bowie not only came in a 5" and 6" version, but a 7" as well.

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Permalink Reply by Bryan W on May 25, 2016 at 20:45

Nicely done John, I love reading your posts. I'm constantly learning something!

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by John McCain on May 25, 2016 at 21:19

Bryan W-Thank you so much for your kind words--I use your PDF on The Tang Stamps Of Adolph Kastor, Camillus and Their Cutlery Relatives all the time and of course, your great work on the magazine. Glad I can occasionally add to your already vast wealth of knowledge !!

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Permalink Reply by Michael Squier on May 26, 2016 at 11:45

Thanks John. So now I have to find a 6" and a 7" , oh boy.

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Permalink Reply by Aaron Walter on July 17, 2017 at 8:53

I found this EBRO knife during an auction. I was wondering if you all could shine any light on it for me. It looks pretty well made and the aging looks right. A note with it said WWII maybe.

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Permalink Reply by Aaron Walter on July 17, 2017 at 9:13

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Permalink Reply by Bryan W on July 23, 2017 at 20:38

Ah, a thistle-top knife. The blade has been heavily ground down, but there was a very good article in Knife World a couple years ago on this style knife, which was manufactured by several different companies. The handle appears to be in great shape. Nice pattern and a nice find! The vintage is likely correct, possibly earlier - its got the age, wear and markings. Look back on the Knife World/KNIFE Magazine website and you should be able to track down that issue - it will tell you everything about this style knife. Enjoy!

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Permalink Reply by Jan Carter on July 24, 2017 at 19:51

Bryan W ! Thank you for the info!

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Permalink Reply by Aaron Walter on July 25, 2017 at 8:03

Thanks for the info Bryan W, very helpful.

Bryan W said:

Ah, a thistle-top knife. The blade has been heavily ground down, but there was a very good article in Knife World a couple years ago on this style knife, which was manufactured by several different companies. The handle appears to be in great shape. Nice pattern and a nice find! The vintage is likely correct, possibly earlier - its got the age, wear and markings. Look back on the Knife World/KNIFE Magazine website and you should be able to track down that issue - it will tell you everything about this style knife. Enjoy

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KnifeMakerPermalink Reply by Charles Gadda on January 22, 2021 at 11:40

Out of curiosity, what happens if you have an EBRO Bowie knife similar to the above, but it does NOT have the "Alfred Williams Sheffield England" stamp on it? I just won the following on eBay, but I wonder as to authenticity/date of manufacture: