Lewis Axe Co, Lewistown Pa. ??????

[Square_peg]

The stamp looks like it was applied by the end user not the factory.

 

[Sudsy]

Nice job of it whoever did it.

 

[300Six]

I have a few 50s-60s era Walters axes that are marked GOV'T OF B.C. in the same way as your head (discrete (long and narrow) indent and separate from the brand stamp) but website yesteryeartools indicates that these were so marked right at the factory. What's puzzling about yours possibly being user initials is the SQM looks to have been expertly applied with a dedicated three letter punch and not the usual array of individual stamps. If you never do 'get a handle on this' (another axe-originated euphemism ?); a stab at San Quentin Mortuary (autopsy/interment equipment inventory) ought to generate lots of cocktail conversation for ya.

 

[Steve Tall]

I have a few 50s-60s era Walters axes that are marked GOV'T OF B.C. in the same way as your head (discrete (long and narrow) indent and separate from the brand stamp) ...

Your mention of BC Canada made me immediately think of the town of Squamish, which has a

Ministry of Forests, Lands & Natural Resource Operations
42000 Loggers Ln, Squamish, BC

Just a WAG.

 

[Steve Tall]

Now my guesses are leaning toward
U.S.Q.M.
or
U.S.Q.M.D
(United States Quarter Master Department)

There are some online references to U.S.Q.M. from around 1900 or so.
This from 1912:

Another reference, mentions "axe-helves with the letters U.S.Q.M.D. (United States Quarter Master Department) branded on them...":

Another reference:
"Similar items were found at Mackinac – in fact, serving ware marked with the U.S.Q.M.D. stamp accounted for 38% of all ceramics recovered. Such a finding is to be expected, since the U.S. Quartermaster Department (U.S.Q.M.D.) maker’s mark is found at most sites associated with U.S. military occupation"
from
Individual Agency and Military Structure:
Personal Artifacts From 1890s Fort Missoula
Jackson Cossitt Mueller
The University of Montana

 

[crbnSteeladdict]

Now my guesses are leaning toward
U.S.Q.M.
or
U.S.Q.M.D
(United States Quarter Master Department)

There are some online references to U.S.Q.M. from around 1900 or so.
This from 1912:

Another reference, mentions "axe-helves with the letters U.S.Q.M.D. (United States Quarter Master Department) branded on them...":

Another reference:
"Similar items were found at Mackinac – in fact, serving ware marked with the U.S.Q.M.D. stamp accounted for 38% of all ceramics recovered. Such a finding is to be expected, since the U.S. Quartermaster Department (U.S.Q.M.D.) maker’s mark is found at most sites associated with U.S. military occupation"
from
Individual Agency and Military Structure:
Personal Artifacts From 1890s Fort Missoula
Jackson Cossitt Mueller
The University of Montana

I believe I can see the fifth letter. The shape points to letter C ....>> USQMC created in 1912 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartermaster_Corps_(United_States_Army)
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-h-bishop-co-usqmc-hand-1797518695
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/c-atkins-co-saw-usqmc-vintage-tool-ww-75438842

 

[Square_peg]

I was assuming owners initials

Can you repost those initials? I'm not seeing them now.

 

[300Six]

Boy, we can count on you not to miss a beat Steve! USQM 'C' or 'D' is plausible given the details you have unearthed and put forward. If only the axe head hadn't been aggressively 'shined up' with a abrasives to obliterate the possible presence of shallow faint markings on either side of the centerline. Oh well.

 

[Sudsy]

If only the axe head hadn't been aggressively 'shined up' with a abrasives to obliterate the possible presence of shallow faint markings on either side of the centerline. Oh well.

Brass brush, 600 grit, a green scotch brite pad, and Flitz polish can hardly be called aggressive
And FWIW nothing was obliterated, what you see is how it looked just minus some surface rust.

I refinish vintage French Sabatier chefs knives as a hobby and never "obliterate" the very delicate markings on those. An axe head is easy stuff in comparison.

 

[VintageToolCo]

Polishing a rare old axe is good. It’s called restoration . All depends on how you want it to look. Restoring them makes them much more valuable to buyers.

That's a Dayton not a Michigan.

Now I will say that next time you should just use a wire wheel to remove only the rust, polishing up old hand tools isn't normally seen as a good thing around here.
They're your tools to do with as you wish, but you should just know it's not a popular practice around here.

I would t say that.

That's a Dayton not a Michigan.

Now I will say that next time you should just use a wire wheel to remove only the rust, polishing up old hand tools isn't normally seen as a good thing around here.
They're your tools to do with as you wish, but you should just know it's not a popular practice around here.

Rare ?? I was NOT expecting that
And i went and polished it
Son of a Bugger !!!!!

Hey Hickory n Steel - you were right

 

[Old Axeman]

"Polishing a rare old axe is good" and "Restoring them makes them much more valuable to buyers" I would say neither of those statements are true. Polishing a working or competition axe is sometimes helpful. Restoring axes makes them less valuable to many buyers.