Fisher Propeller Questions

[Chico]

Hello,
I recently acquired a wooden propeller with the following markings:
Small 'Fisher' decal
A7A stamped in wood on hub
SC 17800 with a 4 blade propeller like marking stamped on prop near hub
8 x 5 then a 6 offset and stamped on prop near hub
Measuring 8' 1/8" tip to tip
Im trying to match this propeller to a plane in the attached pic and learn its history. The man I got it from said it had been in his family since at least the 1930's and gave me a picture of the plane that was kept with the prop that he said it came off of.

Does anyone know anything about Fisher propellers? I found they had a contract for 400 standard J-1 airplanes in 1917...am I on the right track with this?

Does the A7A stamp denote a match for a J-1 with a Hall Scott engine?

Also noticed that one of the copper tip covers has a seam the the other doesn't, what is the purpose of that?

Is the plane in the picture a J-1? I've had a hard time trying to tell the difference between pictures of J-1 and Jenny planes online.

If the name of a city was painted on the wing did it denote a specific purpose at the time, like a mail plane etc.?

Sorry for asking so many questions but figured the members of this forum might point me in the right direction. I'm slowly getting educated and having fun researching this old prop and it's Local history. Any help or info would be appreciated. Thank you

[Dbahnson]

I think you are correct on your information so far and definitely on the right track. I've seen several props that appear identical to yours, including this one that I traded several years ago.

The "SC17800" stamping is a Signal Corps number which establishes its manufacture for military use, but no identification properties. It's a fairly high number so I suspect was manufactured in the early twenties.

I haven't come across that manufacturer, but keep in mind that there were hundreds of propeller manufacturers competing for contracts with the Signal Corp and the Navy in the late teens and early twenties. I'll try to look through some old records I have to see if I can find any letters from the company, although 400 propellers is a relatively small number. Some companies were promising production levels near 400 props PER DAY.

The crack in the sheathing is unusual, likely not manufactured that way and may be the result of metal fatigue. The prop has been mounted and used - as evidenced by the "witness marks" where the metal hub compressed against the wooden hub.

[Chico]

Thank you very much for your response and the great information