Wm Powell, of Birmingham, has been sold. It was the oldest British gunmaker still operating in same family hands (since the early 19th Century).
Rumour has it that they will no longer be operating out of central Birmingham and I'm to understand it that someone connected with Churchill's, or formerly so, was the purchaser. (Neither confirmed)
The new owners may achieve great success with the name, but it is sad to see the family lose it after two centuries. You'd be hard-pressed to find someone as dedicated to the trade as Peter Powell.
End of an era, for sure.
