This month we are featuring another European cutlery center which still contributes some of the finest knives made in the world today. While blacksmithing was necessary for any town to have basic implements for farming, certain areas of Europe seemed … Read more...
HAVE A COKE AND A SMILE
There are a few inventions that have advanced the human civilization in exponential leaps; the wheel, penicillin, the steam engine, paper, the telephone, gunpowder, the compass, optical lenses, nuclear fission, and of course, Coca-Cola. (Please note that these are not … Read more...
Greatest Walking Trail in the World Part II
It is a 2200-mile corridor of solitude and serenity. But don’t let the scale of the AT deter your ambition. You don’t need to be a hardcore backpacker to enjoy the wonders of this spectacular natural treasure. All you need … Read more...
THE GREATEST WALKING TRAIL IN THE WORLD – PART 1
It has more accolades that space to mention, and it is known the world over by outdoor enthusiasts. Countless have tried to conquer its length in one shot, and many succeed. Most see it as a place to escape the … Read more...
Tumbling Waters – Amicalola Falls
I felt it; if only briefly. If you are an outdoor person, you will immediately know what I’m talking about. That first time you walk outside in late summer and you feel a crispness to the air. It’s that Indian-Summer … Read more...
Discover Cutlery Artifacts
One of my favorite past-times is visiting Revolutionary and Civil War battlefields and National Historic sites. Ever since I was a kid, I have been enthralled by placing myself back in time at these hallowed grounds. Recently, Melissa and I … Read more...
American Cutlery Renaissance
American Cutlery is now known as the finest in the world, rivaling the cutleries of Seki, Japan, Solingen, Germany, Toledo, Spain, Maniago, Italy and others. As we discussed in Newsletters Volume III and IV, American Cutlery was borne out … Read more...
The Origin of the Barlow
There are some knives so famous that everyone knows what they are, including non-knife people; the Bowie knife, the Ka-Bar fighting knife, and the famous Barlow to name a few. Of all the well-known knives out there, the Barlow probably … Read more...
CONNECTIONS TO HISTORY THROUGH A POCKET KNIFE
On April 15, 1912, the RMS Titanic sank in the north Atlantic after hitting an iceberg, killing 1,517 people. It is a tragic story that has achieved sensational fame because of Hollywood, numerous museums, and the sheer magnitude of the … Read more...
The Life of Horace Kephart – Great Knife Stories in History
What’s in a name? Have you ever wondered where certain knife names come from? Sometimes they are so weird that it is intriguing to think about the creative genius. Other times they make no sense. Sometimes the knife carries on … Read more...
PRESIDENTIAL KNIVES
American Presidential history is dotted with great knives. Partly because a healthy percentage of our Presidents have had military careers and view knives as indispensable tools, but moreover because our Presidents have often mirrored the spirit of America. That spirit … Read more...
THE GREATEST CUTLER TO AMERICA – Rodgers and Wostenholm
We needed to continue our British theme for another month because just opening the discussion about the roots of American Cutlery in Sheffield, England would leave out two of the most important names in the entire cutlery industry. Those two … Read more...
AMERICA’S ENGLISH ROOTS IN SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND
American Cutlery is revered for many notable contributions to the greater global edged tool community. The Bowie Knife for example is found all over the planet and has been manufactured the world over since it became famous back in the … Read more...
The World’s Oldest Known Folding Knife
Have you ever wondered about the oldest pocket knife ever found? What would you guess the age would be? When exactly did man decide to take a blade, cut the tang, put a hole in for a pivot pin, and … Read more...
The Beginning of the American Red Cross…
…and the role of the pocket knife.
Man’s oldest tool has been everywhere that we as a species have been. It’s odd to think about in those terms, but the knife was just as indispensable for astronauts exploring outer space … Read more...