Ragg’s was among the first to start traditional razor making (Richard Ragg, a cutler in Ecclesfield in 1601, was apparently a distant ancestor). And it was the last to finish.  In 1831, John Ragg (1801-1851) and William Gould Ragg (c.1809-1865) took over the family business at Johnson Street, off Nursery Street. They were the sons of Joseph Ragg (c.1774-1839) and Ann Ragg (c.1781-1842). Joseph was a scissors smith and was listed in directories between 1822 and 1833 as a scissors manufacturer in Nursery Street. He died on 29 November 1839, aged 65.  The gravestone of Joseph and Ann is in the yard of Upper (Unitarian) Chapel, Norfolk Street.

In 1833, John & William Ragg was listed as a razor, scissors, and pen knife manufacturer, Johnson Street.  In 1839, the firm began advertising its striking ‘NAPOLEON’ trade mark (showing Napoleon crossing the Alps painted by Jacques-Louis David). ‘PARAGON’ and ‘PLANTAGANET’ were other marks. While William oversaw the workshops, John (the traveller) sold razors mainly to high-class cutlery shops and gentleman’s outfitters in London and Birmingham. He died at his residence in Victoria Street on 7 December 1851, aged 49. William G. Ragg (an Overseer of the Poor and chairman of the Highway Board) died on 11 October 1865, aged about 56, at his residence in Broomhill. He left under £6,000. The brothers lie in unconsecrated graves in the General Cemetery.  Apparently, William never married and so the business passed to James Crawshaw Ragg (1814-1887) – another son of Joseph and Ann – and William Ragg (1836-1907).  The latter was the son of John Ragg and Louisa née Hamilton Bourke (born in Belize). They had married in 1830.  James Crawshaw Ragg married Elizabeth, the daughter of Joseph Smith.

The Nursery Street craftsmen (helped by outworkers) specialized in hand-forged razors and scissors, besides offering ‘pen knives in every variety’.  J.C. Ragg ‘delighted in good work in scissors, and once … expressed his regret that the demand for it was being superseded by the introduction of cheap, showy, worthless goods’ (Sheffield Independent, 5 July 1887). He was also an artist and once said that his brushstrokes had meant that his house in Brincliffe had not cost him a penny. He suffered a seizure and died at his home in Barker’s Road, on 2 July 1887, aged 72. He was buried in the General Cemetery, leaving £5,618.  His youngest daughter, Mary Elizabeth, married William Morton.

William Ragg Jun., the senior partner, died in Broomgrove Road on 5 June 1907, aged 70. He was buried in an unconsecrated grave in the General Cemetery, leaving effects under £90.  William’s son – the third William Ragg (1881-1965) – had joined the business in 1896 and assumed control. In 1907, Ragg’s relocated to Nursery Works, 95 Eldon Street. It became ‘Ltd’ in 1921, with £10,000 capital. In the 1920s, it produced safety razors under the trade name ‘ROTAX’, using its own machinery. Faster German machines were later installed, which were capable of producing about 15,000 blades a day. ‘PARAGON’ was also etched on safety razors. In addition, in 1933 Ragg Tuning Forks Ltd (capital £1,000) was established; and Ragg’s also began making blades for handicraft modelling.

In 1956, Ragg’s moved to Nursery Works at Norton Hammer, Little London Road.  William Ragg – grandson of the founder – died in Broomhall Place on 7 August 1965, aged 84.  He left £36,233. His son, William Gordon Marriot Ragg (1913-2011), took charge.  His typescript reminiscences (Hawley Collection) described how Ragg’s took over the only other traditional razors makers, T. R. Cadman and C. Myers, in 1965 and 1973, respectively, but then ceased razor manufacture in 1977 when it moved to new premises at Callywhite Lane, Dronfield.  Its razor craftsmen, Thomas Renshaw (aged 79) and Bill Hukin (aged 73), retired. The firm – after its takeover of William Grant – continued to make professional knives, palette knives, and surgical scalpels as Granton Ragg Ltd, Parkway. By 2011, it had been renamed Granton Medical Ltd, which reflected its focus on scalpels, sterilised packaging, and tuning forks for medical diagnosis).  The firm still included descendants of the Ragg family (Sheffield Star, 16 November 2011).  In 2012, Granton Medical sold Ragg Tuning Forks to Uniplex.