“Pat June 23, 1870” is stamped on the back of the tang. Founded in 1865 as Henry Sears & Company in Rockford, Illinois, they were located at the corner of Church and Fenten Streets. The address from 1869 through 1884 was 602 N. Church Street. They first used the trademark “Queen,” about 1870. The business became the Henry Sears Manufacturing Company in 1879, and in 1883 the name became Henry Sears & Son.
From 1879 to 1881, the Henry Sears Manufacturing Company operated a factory in Middlebury, Connecticut. This factory was either moved to Illinois or closed by 1881. The business was moved in 1885 to Chicago, but Henry D. Sears retained a residence in Rockford. Henry Sears, E.B. Sears, and E.W. Beattie operated the business in Chicago. In 1897, the company was sold to Farwell-Ozmun-Kirk & Company Hardware of St. Paul, Minnesota.
c 1883-1897