“Northfield” knives were made by Henry Gill in his shop in Northfield, Connecticut. Henry Gill was born in Sheffield, England February 27, 1874. His father William Henry Gill was an expert cutler.
He came to the United States in search of steady work and higher wages. His wife, Mary Selby Gill, and son Henry joined him in 1881. In 1888, at the age of 14, Henry went to work in the Northfield Knife Company factory as an apprentice.
The Gill family returned to Sheffield, England in 1890, and Henry was taught the art of forging blades while there. Returning to Connecticut, Henry finished his apprenticeship, and worked in several different factories. He returned to Northfield in 1913, and became manager of the factory.
Gill then moved to Little Valley, New York and went to work for the Cattaraugus Cutlery Company, where he stayed until the early 1920s’. He returned to Northfield, and managed the plant until it was closed in 1929. For wages due him, Gill acquired the machinery from the Northfield plant, and moved it into a plant of his own.
Gill’s operation was almost a one-man operation. He did have two part-time employees, but most of his knives were made by him. He offered over 200 different patterns, and made knives until a few years before his death in 1964 at the age of 90. Gill’s knives were simply marked “Northfield.”
c 1931-1964