Brief History of Pocket Knives

Clem Kadiddlehopper

Clem Kadiddlehopper

knife guy
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Some Historical Dates & History of Pocket Knives


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Thanks for all the help and photos, this was fun.:thumbup:


Give us a history date?
 
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Dec 2012 - JC57 buys his first Case pocket knife and begins the inexorable decline of his financial empire.
 
1745 - George Wostenholm Cutlery Sheffield England

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This old firm was established in 1745 by George Wostenholm in Sheffield, England. This was one of the first large makers of pocketknives.
In 1887 they were granted the trademark I-XL, which is still in use today. When the founder died, his son, Henry Wostenholm, continued the business.
Upon the death of Henry, his son, George, became the sole owner of the business. In 1848, he purchased the old Washington Works and moved the firm
into that building.
In 1971, the firm was purchased by Joseph Rodgers & Sons firm of Sheffield to form the Rodgers-Wostenholm firm, and in 1977 the firm was acquired
by Schrade Cutlerly Co., a division of Imperial Knife Co. of Providence, Rhode Island.



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In accordance with your introductory picture:

Cattaraugus Cutlery Co., Little Valley, N.Y., 1886-1963:

Here is a brief history of the company compiled by John Goins:

"C. 1886-1963 Founded by John B.F. champlin and ran by members of the Champlin family during the entire existence of the company. The firm was originally called J.B.F. Champlin, founded in 1880 as a jobbing firm. Tint Champlin joined the firm in 1882, and the name became J.B.F. Champlin & Son.

In 1886, Champlin`s brother-in-laws, the four Case Brothers, W.R., John D., Jean, and Andrew became members of the firm, and the name was changed to the Cattaraugus Cutlery Company. Cattaraugus became a manufacturing concern about 1890, when they purchased the tools and equipment from the defunct Beaver falls cutlery company. Cattaraugus made an excellent quality knife, many patterns are avidly sought by today`s collector.

A couple of my Cattaraugus knives:
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1989 - Case Knives - W. R. Case & Sons

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Case Bros. Cutlery was founded in 1889 in Little Valley, New York, by John, Jean and Andrew Case. They adopted the now famous trademark "Tested XX" about 1895.
When their factory in Little Valley burned in 1905, a nephew of the founders, Rusell Case, took over and consolidated the firms holdings as W. R. Case & Sons, Bradford, Pennsylvania.
This purchase also included the Springville, New York, branch of the Case Bros. In 1922 W. R. Case & Sons bought the Crandell Cutlery Company in Bradford.

Case Cutlery was family owned until 1972 when it was acquired by American Brands, Inc.
 
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1856 - New York Knife Company began production.

1910 - Utica Cutlery Company was founded.

1920 - Remington was under way with a wide variety of pocketknives.

1953 - John Russell Case, Case founder, dies at the age of 75.

1972 - W.R. Case and Sons is sold to American Brands.

1993 - Zippo buys Case Company.
 
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Nice thread idea Al, I'll dig out a few dates (just off out for a walk) :)

August 20, 1913 - Discovery of stainless steel by Harry Brearley.

June 1914 - First stainless steel knives produced at Portland Works, Sheffield.
 
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1700s - Ettrick knife developed in Scotland’s Ettrick Valley.

1822 – Earliest known Wharncliffe blade

1884 – Victorinox founded

1886 - Cattaraugus Cutlery founded.

1892 – Marble’s Knives founded

1893 - Wenger founded

1909 - Cattaraugus patented the liner lock

1914-1918 - Camillus # 57 pattern electrician's knife (Later the TL-29) produced during WWI.

1929: Remington sold out to the Dupont Company.

1930: Schatt-Morgan Knife Company bankrupt

1930 - Albert M. Baer was put in charge of sales for Camillus.

1931 - Camillus made Kent brand knives for F.W. Woolworth

1931 - New York Knife Company bankrupt.

1940, Baer left Camillus and joined Ulster. Most of his buyers, including Sears and Woolworth's, followed him.
 
This thread is an amazing idea and contribution, thanks Al. Here's a few dates on Opinel, will add more history later

1890 - Opinel is founded
1955 - The Opinel Virobloc or safety twistlock mechanism was invented
2000 - The Opinel Virobloc locking mechanism was improved to allow locking the blade in either the open or closed position
 
Here is the photo I did the first post from..... you ever wonder who the girl in the window was?:)


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Heinrich Böker starts producing pocket-knives in 1869 in Solingen Germany. Although the company was active in making implements and swords long before this date. One of his brothers emigrated to the US just after the Civil War to set up a cutlery business.
 
1911 - the first Official Boy Scout knives (built by New York Knife Co.) are advertised in the first Handbook for Scouts.

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1902- Hoyt Buck produced the first Buck Knife in Kansas.

1991- Ken Griffey founded Bear MGC Company in Jacksonville, AL.

2005- Wally Gardiner and Joe Hufnagel formed Canal Street Cutlery Company, LLC in Ellenville, NY.
 
When was the first lockback produced? I want to say it was Buck but I don't know that for sure.

Great thread. Merge the edits and make it a sticky.

Better yet, submit it to the Wkipedia page on pocket knives.
 
pinnah said:
When was the first lockback produced? I want to say it was Buck but I don't know that for sure.

Great thread. Merge the edits and make it a sticky.

Better yet, submit it to the Wkipedia page on pocket knives.
Click to expand...

Lockbacks were around in the mid 1800's as John Wilkes Booth had a locking folding dagger on him at Garrets barn.

Navaja's had locking blades in the early 1800's.

They've been around quite a while, just were not popu;ar with the masses. I've always been a bit mystified by this. It seems as long as we're doing knife history, it seems historically what Buck did was pull off a marketing coup to make the lock back a popular knife. By far overshadowing the slip joints that were the major pocket knife for generations before Buck pulled it off with the 110.
 
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1840 - Belknap Hardware opens for business in Louisville, KY.

1864 - A.F. Shapleigh and Co. adopted the famous Diamond Edge trademark.

1866 - Keen Kutter is a trade name first used by Simmons Hardware Company of St. Louis, Missouri in 1866. The name was adopted as a trademark by Simmons Hardware Company in 1870 and was used on their highest quality tools and cutlery.

1878 - Dwight Divine took over the entire control of the Ulster Knife Company.

1890 - John Primble India Steel Works Knives appeared.

1892 - Hundreds are employed in the knife-making business in Ellenville, 700 people alone at New York Knife. Payroll records show earnings of $4 to $6 a week.

1940 - John Primble Belknap HDW. & MFG. Co. tang stamps began.

1985 - Belknap Hardware bankrupt and closed.

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2006 - Great Eastern Cutlery founded.

2012 - December - First ever run of TC Barlows are produced by Great Eastern Cutlery, an SFO by Charlie Campagna.
 
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