The Davistown Museum
Center for the Study of Early Tools
Scattered throughout The Davistown Museum are tools by important manufacturers who are also the subject of
information files compiled by the museum. This is a listing of our holdings for:
Levi Tinkham Collection

Status Location
Ephemera and Documents
Documents
30701E3 Debtor summons to John Tinkum bio DTM
Paper item floating in glass, 8" wide, 9" high, .
30701E2 Deed bio DTM
Paper item floating in glass, 7 1/2" wide, 7 1/2" high, , March 31, 1714.
John Tinkcom.
30701E1 Deed bio DTM
Paper item floating in glass, 7 1/2" wide, 8 1/2" high, , March 24, 1710.
John Tinkcom, Dartmouth, Mass.
AHCE14 Ephraim Timrom deed bio LPC MH
handwritten deed, includes signature of William Bradford Jr., dated 1691.
30701E4 Estate inventory bio DTM
Paper item floating in glass, 7" wide, 11 3/4" high, , May 6, 1794.
John Tinkham, Administrator for the estate of Abagail Tinkham.
Historic Maritime II (1720-1800): The Second Colonial Dominion & the Early Republic
Woodworking: Planes
33013T3 Angled molding or jointing plane bio LPC MH
Wood (beech), cast steel, 8 3/8" long, 3 3/4" and 2 3/4" wide sides, signed "L TINKHAM" "C C GRIFFITH" "F.C.S".
This unusual triangular plane cuts a curved profile. It came from the Watts boat shop and might have a function in making edges of hull
planks join together in such a way that they don't come apart when the wood expands and contracts.
4613T1 Panel raising plane bio DTM MH
Wood (rosewood), cast steel, 14" long, 2 1/4" wide, 6 1/2" tall, signed "C.C. GRIFFITH" "L*T; E*CLARK MIDDLEBORO" and "BENNET"
on blade.
The L*T signature is probably Levi Tinkham. E. Clark is Elisha Clark. The Bennet mark is probably N. Bennet, a smith in Middleboro, MA.
Pollack (2001) notes some connection between Clark and Tinkham; the DATM (Nelson 1999) notes that Bennett is known to have made irons
for Clark.
33013T2 Sliding fence plow plane bio LPC MH
Wood (beech), cast steel, 9 3/4" long, 9" tall, 7 1/2" wide, signed "L. TINKHAM" "C.C. GRIFFITH" "F C S".
51213T1 Wheelwrights' outside compass plane bio LPC MH
Wood (beech), cast steel, 7 1/2" long, 2 5/8" wide, 2" wide blade, signed "NEWBOULD" on blade "L TINKHAM" "C C GRIFFITH CCG" on
body.
The blade was probably made by Thomas Newbould or Samuel Newbould and Co. of Sheffield, England
(http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Samuel_Newbould_and_Co).
Historic Maritime III (1800-1840): Boomtown Years & the Dawn of the Industrial
Revolution
Shipwrights', Sailmakers', and Mariners' Tools
TCC2005 Shipwrights' slick bio photo LPC MH
Cast steel with wood handle, 14 1/2" long, 3 1/2" wide, 10" handle, signed "WARRANTED CAST STEEL" and "_. TINKHAM".
Other than "warranted cast steel," this tool has no manufacturer's touch mark. The slick has an owner's sign (?) "Tinkham" and is part of our
collection of Tinkham artifacts and papers that are on display in the Museum. This slick came from a ship carpenters' tool box discovered in
Foxboro, MA, several years ago and was undoubtedly used by one of the Tinkham clan, probably in the shipyards of New Bedford, Fairhaven,
or Mattapoisset, MA. C. 1810 - 1850. This slick is similar to signed specimens produced by the prolific Underhill clan of Nashua, NH.
Woodworking: Planes

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