On August 21, 1811 William C. Kelly was born in Pittsburgh, Pa. It was a long and winding road for his name and his axes, but they eventually arrived in Cleveland, Ohio in 1983 as True Temper Corp. still carrying his name on their tools. (Now Kelly Tool Division calls Reading, Pennsylvania home.)
And sometime during those later years of the story, this axe – a sturdy single bit, wide Dayton pattern, was forged and embossed with the inscription “Hand Made – Kelly Works”. For Christmas 2012, it was found, restored, and rehung on cracking hard handle of Ohio Hickory, and was sent to the boreal forest of the Idaho panhandle. Re-christened The Thoroughbred, it is now under the respectful handling of our friends, Lauren and David, with the hopes that it helps light their fires for a long time.
