James Bowie and his Bowie Knife!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- James Bowie and his famous Bowie Knife, featured in period newspaper. Sign up to the British Newspaper Archive now with my link! tidd.ly/3uHA8xo
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I love your videos! I'm quite a patriot and hand made a Bowie knife, just for the same purpose as a woods man's knife. a chopper and heavy duty cutting tool. I carry a smaller knife as well but it replaced my hatchet and will be passed down to my son 8). Very cool history in not know it was used as a wood craft knife BUT I thought it would definitely fill that spot. finding out that's what it's designed for was very entertaining thank you for such a great video!!
I vote for more period accounts of ANY weapons. Your commentary in addition to the articles is great.
I third this proposal
Too late to second the motion, but I wholeheartedly agree!
@@dick_richards You're a gentleman and a scholar sir.
Yes
Yes! Seems like it would be excellent to rotate through different weapon's period accounts: sword, musket, rifle, pistol, knife, tomahawk.
Good video! As I understand it, when duels were fought with Bowies, the opponents tied their wrists with a scarf or a cloth & fought "in close" with the knife in the other hand...all of the knives discussed in comments can be used as GP knives...however, imho, a knife like a FS & a Bowie should be considered "fighting knives"....a fk should not be used as a pry bar or to eat with...that is why soldiers carried 2 blades...& the GP blade was not used as a pry unless it was an emergency...I have a Western bowie from the '70's...they were used in the 'Nam, mostly by U.S. Special Forces....
I love your videos where you read from historical sources. Both your recent ones from the newspapersarcives and the older ones from " Swordsmen of the Brittish Empire"
You probably want to remember that Baltimore is in the eastern US, in fact a ship building and port city. That is a more or less 1,000 miles or so east of where the Bowie knife was common. This newspaper account inverts the order of the invention of the duel and Bowie knife according to other accounts.
in the first fight with norris, bowie had norris on the ground and bowie drew his 19 inch folding knife, a spanish navaja, from his breast pocket but because one hand was holding norris down he could only use his teeth to try to open the knife but the delay gave norris's friends time to knock bowie off of norris and bowie then swore to never carry a folding knife again.
Prior to the Colt cap and ball revolvers, the Bowie knife was the sidearm of choice in the American frontier. Sportsmen of the pre1850’s must have been better acquainted with stick fighting, knife fighting, fencing, and pugilism in general since single shot muzzleloaders were the standard military arms.
Don’t mind me as I take this to note for the making of a future DND campaign.
Even after the Colts productions the Bowie Knife remained the primary back up weapon to being out of ammo.
@@gungriffen Very true. Prior to the patent revolver, you had one shot (possibly two, if carrying a pair) before having to resort to a knife or 'hawk. Even after the patent revolver, you had five or six, and a lengthy reloading process to recharge the pistol, prior to the advent of the metallic cartridge.
@@bartonbrevis3831 While the Cartridge did change everything I think the Knife remained the back up weapon of choice till we got the first reliable magazine for autoloader.
Being out of ammo is your chance to rush in or be rushed, and a Combat knife of shorts may be the best weapon or maybe even deterrent.
I might go with the tomahawk being the older and preferred sidearm.
There is no single design for a "Bowie" knife. During this period, many were more like a short sword, around 12", some longer, some shorter. They were the product of local smiths and thus varied in design according to the customer and skills of the craftsman. Demand for them encouraged European manufacturers, especially the great steel centers of Sheffield and Solingen for export. The clip point design familiar to us is more from this source. They remained popular for defense even long after reliable revolvers as it was more easily concealed than a bulky pistol. The "coffin" handle was designed to be more easily concealed and Bowies were frequently carried in a shoulder holster. "Doc" Holliday killed a man with one. According to Wyatt Earp, who witnessed the fight, Doc gutted his adversary before the man's pistol had cleared the holster. I think we would all enjoy any other material you can dig up on this legendary weapon.
It's hard not to like the clip point style of bowie. Broad belly and single edged blade geometry mean great chopping through brush or bone, and clipped point both adds curve to slicing belly, and is one the best points for penetration where single edged blades are concerned.
Almost every killing that has been blamed on Doc Holliday are pure BS.
@@jasondelong1683 Well, I read that account some time ago and no longer recall the source or the details of who, what, where and when. The fight occurred over a poker game. Doc's opponent kept trying to look at the deadwood, and the second time Doc called him on the offense, he claimed the pot. His adversary objects, jumps to his feet and starts to draw. According to Earp, who claimed to have witnessed the affair as a city marshall, Doc drew his knife and gutted the fellow before his pistol had cleared the holster. Earp said he had never seen a man with faster reactions. True? Who knows?
@@jackrice2770 This would have taken place in Dodge City then and if it did happen it is not mentioned in any of the surviving papers or court cases from then.
So Doc Holiday took a knife to a gun fight and won!? Sounds far fetched to me.
Mentioning that this is basically a podcast episode made me realize how much I would love a long form genuine podcast format for these type of discussions. I would be thrilled to listen to a 1-2 hour long episode like this.
That was really entertaining. Yes, more Bowie knife please!
I happen to be descended from the family that made that knife for James Bowie. I am pointing out that James Black did not make that coffin knife for Bowie until Bowie went to the Alamo. I am also pointing out that what James Bowie used in all of his knife fights prior to the Alamo was in fact what is referred to as "the Arkansas Toothpick".
Not sure that is true at all. Whilst the Arkansas Toothpick was certainly a style of knife that was popular at the time there is NO literature that describes Bowie carrying anything other then a large ‘butchers ‘ like blade that he had commissioned. Subsequently referred to as the Bowie knife. Interesting to note though that what we currently perceive as being the original Bowie knife actually pre dates Bowie. In short whilst he may well have carried an Arkansas Toothpick this is mere speculation
@@owb4937 The original Bowie knife, which was verified when returned to Arkansas in 2020, was specifically made for James Bowie by my family just prior to James Bowie went to the Alamo. James Bowie was the person who designed it to best fit his fighting style. The Arkansas Toothpick being used prior to that is documented in Arkansas history.
@@juliawatts1866 "documented in Arkansas history" Ok, so give us a source, I would like to read it.
@@-Zevin- Those documents are in the Arkansas State Archives in Little Rock, Arkansas. I would be happy to contact the state archive for you if you would like.
@@juliawatts1866 That would honestly be fantastic. This has been a topic I have seen debated numerous times online, to have some solid indisputable evidence would be be great. With a direct source we could even update the Wikipedia on Bowie.
It's kind of funny. I'm Dakota from South Dakota and no one I know in real life actually uses the phrase Native American when talking with each other. We all just use Indian.
Although you’ll find yourself progressively more attacked if you keep using the term Indian. The NCAA forced my college to change their team name from Indian to something else a few years ago…not by appealing to anyone’s beliefs but by threatening to take their money away. Everyone I know in the Midwest still calls them Indians.
It’s not funny, and doesn’t make it correct.
Not just my opinion.
Yes, please. More accounts. As a native Texian, I refer to Bowie Knives as Boo-ie, as opposed to Bow-ie. I'm not really sure if there's a consensus on that and I doubt that modern pronunciations are valid indicators of past pronunciations. I haven't lived there for years and rarely speak to Texans, especially in reference to Bowie knives.
Any Texan today will likely pronounce it Boo-ie.
It's like car-by-ne and car-bee-ne, neither sound even remotely close to the French "carabine", which would be ker-ahh-bin. As long as the person understands you, you pronounced it correctly lol
Wikipedia says boo ee so idk. English is dumb.
It’s a persons name so it’s boo-ee
@@austinatherton6577 Yeah, kind of like David Bowie.
Bowie knives were popular during the Australian gold rush in Victoria (1850-53) and were introduced by the influx of Californian gold miners who traveled to Australia following the 1849 gold rush.
I have read that pistols were unreliable and needed to be reloaded daily because some of the black powder tended to absorb moisture. There are accounts of mass firing of guns at dusk each day, this also let your neighbours know you were armed.
The knives were considered every day apparel and are seen in many photos of the era.
Really enjoyed it - thanks very much for taking the time to research and relay.
It wasn't until I started smithing and making knives that I appreciated the Bowie - now I'm quite partial.
Last Friday was my first Bowie knife lesson. It was awesome. I’ve been reading up a bit about Jim Bowie since so looking forward to this one!
Keating?
I grew up right by Galveston and only a couple of hours drive from where the Alamo happened. The stories of Jim Bowie and the Natchez sand bar fight are still well known around there, as well as the Alamo, of course. I'd love more contemporary bowie stuff in the future!
Yes please to more accounts, that was fascinating.
Yes, from San Antonio, Texas. More Bowie knife goodness, please.
I have been carrying a Bowie and Tomahawk more often than not for well over 30 years...in many places around the world.
Since mostly staying State side for the last decade or so, I have had them on my side nearly every day.
It is my intention that I will be returned to the earth with one of each on my belt...or in hand. Though which one of each I know not, as I have been collecting them since childhood, and though I have my favorites, I do rotate them on occasion.
U carry a bowie and Hawk all over the world?
@@wadetaylor1299 Strangely, the "free western countries" make up most of the exceptions to carrying them. So no, not all over the world. Most places however, yes. Without issue I might add.
Don't know about the past but both of my sons carried Bowie knives in Afghanistan and we're from Kentucky.
Good choice, I knew some Canadian Forces who carried various types of blade in Afghanistan, Bowies and Kukri's among them. The Afghans themselves have a very old and prominent 'blade culture'.
The Ka-bar is pretty much a Bowie. Very serviceable for all kinds of chores. Combat, too, but soldiering is mostly being ready, occasionally fighting and fighting mostly with firearms and munitions. Knives keep you alive in all kinds of ways.
This was a treat! It would be awesome if you did a similar video about Canadian and American knives during the colonial period, and the Early Republic. The cutlers of Sheffield played a huge role during this period as well! For example: the knives that Lewis and Clark took on their expedition into the Louisiana Purchase in 1803-1806. Or, the knives carried by the members of Alexander McKenzie's expedition into Canada, etc., etc.
I do a lot of hunting game big small medium and there is a need for multiple styles of edges but if I could pick one it’s the Bowie my main hunting knife that I always carry is my grandpa’s old buck 120 and it’s a Bowie style blade I love it and it’s done everything for me
Sounds like James Bowie became rich by nefarious means.
Step 1: Smuggle in illegally enslaved people
Step 2: Turn in the buyers of said enslaved people for a bounty
Step 3: Buy the enslaved people for pennies on the dollar at the ensuing police auction
Step 4: Profit
Hmm, so the two pronounciation debate is a little interesting. Name comes from the Gaelic name Buidh, h is not a sound but a modifier, so the d is something else entirely, Gaelic is fun. According to a survey it is pronounced as you prefer to say it, Bow-ie, in most of the United States, in fact only portion of Texas pronounces it the other way. And he was not from Texas, he just died there. Nor was he from Scotland, his family moved around quite a bit actually. But there is no evidence how he actually pronounced it. Many immigrants change the pronunciation, if not spelling, of their names, sometimes different family members will pronounce the same name differently. So yeah, there really isn't an argument for one there being just the one way. Even the Gaelic way involves some sound that we don't really use in English (apparently say boo while putting your tongue inbetween your tongue, which I can't even do). So yeah, names and words change under all kinds of circumstances.
i enjoy the historical accounts. its also interesting to note that in Canada you can basically legally open carry any knife that is a tool (not a weapon, not designed to be used on people). there are a few restrictions for weapons or automatically opening knives. but firearms are zero tolerance. since pepper spray for people is illegal, since it is designed for people, where i live, there is a lot of bear spray that gangs and criminals use since you can easily acquire it as it isn't designed for humans. laws can be weird
You can find such strange weapon laws everywhere: In the country i am from, thanks to a bankrobber at the end of the 80's, pump action shotguns are a prohibited item, and can only be bought by law enforcement and military entities.
Those that were in private ownership when the law came into effect, had to be registered, and can't be sold. So if the person want's to get rid of it, the authorites will collect it. If the person dies, same thing. But and here is the strange part: it is legal to own a semiautomatic shotgun. (but like for anything else semiauto, you need a license). And pump action rifles aren't prhibited either.
@@nirfz may i ask which country? that is a fascinating factoid
@@beepboop204 🇦🇹 austria
One of your best videos....I like the Ka-Bar USMC knife as a general purpose knife...it's a little too big for skinning animals, but great for hacking bone and cutting the game up. Pistols were fairly unreliable for years, but a knife was always going to work.
I’d prob recommend being armed in Baltimore these days though
I own a Cold Steel frontier Bowie, it doesn’t even have to be sharp to be a formidable weapon 😊 it is my modern day Dussak!
We all love Bowie knives on here Matt! More of the same please... I look forward to your videos, many thanks !
I find it wild that a person that gets shot multiple times. Runs illegal slave trade and kills multiple people... Are depicted as nice people.
I live in Canada in a rural area and I always carry a knife. They are useful. It's not a Bowie knife it's a 8 inch pocket knife but it's sharp. Hand guns are rare here but a knife at close quarters is still deadlier than a gun especially if the gun is used for self defence. Again in Canada you will almost never see a handgun other than police.
His name is pronounced Boo Eee. You wouldn't like to be called Matt Eastone, would you?
Other versions of the Bowie tale state that James Bowie's brother Rezin came up with the design of the knife and had it made for James.
Another feature of the knife's legend is that the length of the knife was dictated by the man's length from armpit to waste, as that is the length that can reliably be hidden under a gentleman's coat. Knives were often not allowed indoors.
Had made for himself 9 in half inch hunting knife resemble ordinary butcher knife of the time . He loaned Jim
We love Bowie knife,
But we didn't know the story.
Thank-you.
Without a wont to offend US guys, I think this bowie knife - especially with a single edge and relatively short false one was just a specific kind of hunter´s knife/hunting fang of the Dear Auld Continent.
Just a large blade hunting/camp knife with a substantial cross guard. Story I heard in my youth was he added a large guard after his hand slipped onto the blade during a fight and was injured.
If you look at the common "Trade Knife" of the 1700s and early 1800s that makes perfect sense.
In ,Germany' of 19th century, the Hirschfänger , a knife for ,final stab' and Waidblatt/ Standhauer , a knife used as little billhook/ cleaver, had also one side full edge, and a only small second edge.
Hope there isn't any statue of him in the US .. the Woke will be on overtime getting rid of it.
I always love the period accounts, but I'm also perfectly fine with more audio based video's, because I often listen while doing kitchen stuff. ^_^
I read that book that was pictured in the thumbnail. At the beginning of the book it said that James Bowie and his family mostly used knives and lassos because firearms and ammunition was expensive. I love Bowie knives too. Another great knife was the Arkansas Toothpick. Your videos are awesome.
Knives don't run out of ammunition, besides firearms were all muzzle loaders.
As a Texan I have to say I've never actually heard "boo-ie" knife until Mr. Easton started mentioning them in his videos, I've always pronounced it as it is spelled. Then again I'm not exactly the type of person who'd hear it much in real life, anyway. So maybe boo-ie is the more common pronunciation here.
@@dick_richards Are they saying "boo", or "boo-ie"?
As a Texan who lives in a rural area this is the first time I have ever heard the knife pronounced any way except boo-ee
Don't worry, the British cannot pronounce English correctly.
As an Arkansawyer who talks about them frequently, it is 'Boo-ee'
@@turtlebutme7103 I figured that would be the case. I am a suburb baby, sadly. :P
The only authoritative source for Bowie knife is, without doubt, David Bowie's biography.
A little tidbit for you, at that time, (really most of the 1800's) certain places in the United States did not allow firearms. Places like State Assemblies, Travers and the like but they also didn't allow knives under four inches in length (usually measured by laying the knife across the palm of ones hand). The reason was if a knife was that small, it was far too easy to conceal and therefore harder to find someone if they committed murder versus with a large knife. Some places in the US, those laws have never been taken off the books but I've not heard of anyone arrested for that.
The scrap that made Bowie famous came to be known as “The Sandbar Fight”. Bowie was one of several seconds observing a duel when things got squirrely. He was shot and stabbed, killed his opponent with a knife and survived.
He was a bit of a frontier rogue, but he wasn’t alone.
He was a man of his time.
Consider an 1873 peacemaker had a capacity of 6 (though often only 5 rounds were carried and the hammer sat on an empty cylinder) the reload time was substantial even with the introduction of metallic cartridges. A capable fighting knife was considered a valuable item. I will admit in what I see in period sales catalogs and old photos, often the knives were of a smaller size than an early bowie knife. 4-6 inches stilettos styles were often seen rather than the 8-12 large hack and slash blades
you often see in earlier references.
Yes, in the antique world, 6 or 7 inch blades are much more common than 8+ inch blades. Though in fairness, most of these knives were seen as hunting and general purpose field knives, rather than specifically fighting knives.
@@scholagladiatoria I think that's because most frontiersmen were sane rational people. However, you do read many accounts of people (rationally or otherwise) in the muzzleloading era ordering massively large knives or even hunting swords, with the mindset of "I may be under threat and have to defend myself therefore I need the longest sharpened iron bare I can carry comfortably." The correlation I noticed was the more effective the firearms got, generally the smaller the bladed weapons got. Also, Maturity probably has something to do with it. I served as an infantryman in the army for 2 hitches, when I was a young private I had a KABAR I always carried, by the time I got out as a Staff sergeant I had a case trapper pocket knife. A book you may enjoy about personal weapons of American frontiersmen is "Gunsmoke and saddle leather. Which covers the end of the American colonial period to the introduction of smokeless powder and deals almost exclusively with private citizens rather than military-issued weapons.
the Bowie knife is the 1911 of the knife world.
A Bowie knife is MUCH bigger. See “Alamo” movie with Jason Patrick.
The Bowie knife comes in many sizes & shapes actually. But if it was in a movie ofc it has to be true!! 😉
I was given to understand that there are 3 different pronunciations of Bowie.
I Scotland, the original land, the sound was like a dog, ‘Bow Wow’.
In England the name sounded like the 'Bow' as in bow and arrow.
And when it came to America, it was changed again to sound like ‘Boo’ (as in boo who).
Best answer
Woohoo, Bowie knife and Texas mentions in one video! Yes, please, more, more, more! 😎
By 1886, there was not a lot of "Frontier" left int he lower 48 states. And most "Cowboys" carried some form of a cartridge revolver. Many did carry a knife, but it was more of a utility knife, for eating with and general cutting chores, not so much for self defense. As for the Sand Bar fight, of the research I have done, it was most likely he carried a straight backed large butcher type knife, and not a "Bowie" knife. I've always heard that the "Bowie" knife was not made until some time between 1831 and 1833. I could be wrong. I only have four Bowie knives in my collection :)
The problem stems from there having been two @ Bowie Knives @. The first one was a hunting knife that Rezin Bowiie had made as a gift for his brother James. This is most likely the one that was used in The Sandbar Duel. It was after that affair that James had what we now know as the Bowie Knife ' made by James Black. It was designed to be a weapon, not a hunting knife or woodsman's tool. It had an 11 1/2" long, 1/4" thick, and 2 1/2" wide blade with a brass S guard. And as coffin hilts were James Black's trademark, it pronbably had one of those as well. It was a ferocious looking thing apparently,. Davy Crockett wrote in his last letter from the Alamo to his wife, that he had Met James Bowie and had seen his famous knife and that. " The thought of it being used on another human being is enough to make a strnong man feel queasy, especially before breakfast. " And I don't think anyone could accuse Davy Crockett of having a weak stomach where violence was concerned. So it must have looked really nasty back then lol. Of course, nowadays they are not thought of in quite the same way. Familiarity breeds contempt as the saying goes.
Jim Bowie gave one of his knives to his friend, a actor. it is now in a private collection. it looks like a large butchers knife ,a triangular shape with a clip point. this is shown on TH-cam. It looks nothing like a bowie knife we know today, which has a curved clip point. The clip point knife we know today as a bowie, has been used all over the world in the past, which have a curved clip point.
I love that at time of writing TH-cam says that this video has four comments, but I can read six comments.
Edit: Christ, I knew that in the 1840s-50s the U.S. Congress was a bit rowdy, but I hadn't heard that the state legislators were actually killing each other in the chamber!
GREAT video, thanks you!
Mat, I am a great fan of yours. I also have a modest collection of knives. I thought you might be interested in references to the Bowie knife in WW1 by the German as well as the British soldiers, in the biography, " GOODBYE TO ALL THAT", by Robert Graves, on pages 111 and 153. This is a first hand account of the effectiveness of this weapon by this famous British writer.
Could you do the FS Fairbairn
Great video. I say Bowie "booie" when referring to the knife simply b/c that's how Jim Bowie himself pronounced his name. Just like I wouldnt call David Bowie that b/c he pronounced it the way its spelled.
By the by I think it was his brother who designed & forged the knife for him.
We always heard it called Booie when I was a kid in Missouri.
Please do dig out more accounts
Honestly one of my favorite videos of yours in a while Matt, though I always enjoy your content. If you have inclination and time, more videos about the weapons and history of North America would be very welcome!
So interesting. Please do more in the subject
There is an old story that states that Jim Bowie's knife was forged from an iron meteorite. It has always sounded like a way to give this weapon a mythical quality, do you know if there is any truth to this story?
Have never heard that before in any of the zillion retellings of Bowie story Ive watched and read. It might be from that fictional old movie Ive never seen called The Iron Mistress. (it is; I just looked up the movie) It's not uncommon though for custom makers to make a knife from a meteorite if a customer requests it and/or furnishes the meteorite. It doesnt lend any special qualities other than the novelty of knowing it's made of outer space matter, costs a fortune too.
Oh goodness! This was amazing to listen to! Those little details in the text really reveal how incredibly diverse those times were within the area we now consider the US. It's really easy for me to forget how much more physical distance meant back when airplanes were not invented yet!
I wonder if there is any connection between the products from Sheffield and what Bowie's chopper knife actually looked like. Maybe more like a 1918 USMC marine bolo knife I suspect or a pointed Kukri.
Bowie Knife is a blade type that would make sense when made in to various different sizes and with different hilt types.
And so they are… There are dozens of “modified” Bowie blade shapes on the market. Arguably, the famous “K-Bar” Marine knife is one.
@@Bikewer a Bowie is kinda modified Seax 😅
@@beepboop204 An upsidedown Seax, but there are features of a Bowie that really are distinct. It has a false edge, it has a "drop" point and it usually has a guard and a finger choil/a flat section on blade closest to the hilt so you can put your finger over the guard in a fencing style grip.
@@steezydan8543 yes both the Seax and Bowie have different knife modifications. always comes down to the .... .... context
yesterdays news todays history.
In the New Zealand Wars Gustavus von Tempsky had his men equipped with Bowie knives. People got very attached to them.
Great knives, I have one from Svord.
Very interesting read,great find...thankyou for sharing this with us, I'm enjoying your uploads.
Speaking of that time, when guns were subject to misfiring etc....a knife was always ready and always loaded. : -)
The first Colt revolver came out in 1837. The Colt Paterson Revolver, a 5 shot .36 caliber percussion cap revolver. It wasn't until 1851 that Colt came out with a true belt, or holster pistol. The 1851 Colt Navy, also in .36 caliber. Made for the US Navy at the time, but became very popular with civilians.
Baby Dragoons of the 1840s were predecessors to the '51 Navy. I shoot an 1851 London Navy and a 3rd Model Dragoon incidentally :-)
@@scholagladiatoria Okay, yes the Baby Dragoon, .31 caliber was primarily created for the Pony Express. As for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd model Dragoons, those where any thing but belt guns. Way to big. They where carried in holsters on a saddle. I guess you could carry one, but you'd want to wear suspenders. The 1851 Navy, was light enough that it was comfortable to wear in a holster, on your belt. See what I"m saying?
September 16th, 1827 - On a sandbar above Natchez, Mississippi near what is the town of Vidalia, Louisiana, a dual between Dr. Thomas Maddox and Samuel Wells erupted into a brawl involving the observers as well.
The most historically accurate account of this fight is in Mr. Bowie with a Knife- A history of the Sandbar Fight by J.R. Edmondson. In summary, Bowie, after almost being knocked to his knees by a thrown pistol, shot through a lung, shot in the thigh, then stabbed in the breast and hand, drew a foot long butcher knife...Killed one of his attackers, and drove the rest from the field.
From: Paradoxes of a Deadly Myth By: Dwight C. McLemore, Yorktown, Virginia.
Very cool account. Thanks and more such stuff would be nice as well.
Nice, love the video.
"I don't personally care very much. I say Bowie because I'm British."
So... Would that make it a Bouwie?
+scholagladiatoria *One Rezin Bowie and his brother James specificated a new fighting knife in the wake of a 19 September 1827 rumble at Vidalia, LA, USA,* where James took out two assailants who wounded him (one by sword stick, one by pistol) with a Jesse Clifft butcher knife; James Black of Arkansas forged two knives, one with a sharp clip point, to Rezin's spec, and the clip-point was inspiration for numerous dagger designs in the 19th-Century United States. COLD STEEL® (Ventura, CA, USA) has several designs of Bowie knife in production: the Natchez (C/N CS-16DN), the Laredo (C/N CS-16DL), the Wild West (C/M CS-81B), the 1917 Frontier (C/N CS-88CSAB), and the Chaos (C/N CS-80NTB).
The bowie is still a very popular shelf defense weapon of choice even up in the northern states.
You questioned in your video why Bowie would have chosen a knife for self-defense?
You made one point in regards to the pistols of the day being singal shot.
I would like to make another point. A man with a knife poses a bigger freat within 25 feet than a man, with a pistol.
This has been proven. A man with a knife from twenty-five feet can charge and stab you before you can pull aim and fire your pistol.
Of course, many men of James Bowie's days carried both a pistol and a knife.
They would discharge their pistol from a distance, then through or use it as a club, then go for their knife.
Thank you for sharing the article. I really enjoyed it.
The British Hunters resemble what we call a San Francisco Bowie. The examples of the San Francisco Bowies that I've seen, were made with very expensive materials. Mother of Pearl handles, in-lays, etchings, etc. etc.
Indian Territory is roughly Oklahoma, now.
Otherwise, fun content.
If the story is true about the Speaker of the local "government" killing an unarmed man, and not being convicted, it is shocking proof that that was a place of NO LAW, no morals and no honour.
I go so far as to assert that OBJECTIVELY if there hasn't been a subsequent State ordered re-trial, conviction and condemnation to readdress the record, it is STILL a place without law, morals or honour.
So the bowie was originally to 1820s and 30s the smaller shap you held up. During and after the Civil War. The bowie During this period are 15 to 18 inch blades. Think short sword to clear brush. So basically a machete.
Addition to this two American icons first met on the steps of St Louise Catherdral New Orleans 1817. James Audubon, that budding early American wildlife artist, introduced himself to Jim Bowie.
How do you, as a Texan, say the name Bowie? Does it rhyme with Louie, or snowy? Or do you say it differently depending on if you are talking about the Alamo hero, or the British rock star?
According to a dialect survey from Joshua Katz’s North Carolina State University, Texans are among the only Americans to still rhyme Bowie with gooey, though the portion of us who do appears to be shrinking as Ziggy Stardust’s fame eclipses that of Texas’s own James.
Say it with me Bowie (Boo-ie) knife. Ziggy Stardust didn't design the "Bowie" knife. Please stop mispronouncing the name.
Interesting!
I really like these "podcast" videos =)
Re percussion lock, the first one was invented in Scotland by Reverand James Forsyth in 1825, so as to give a more simultaneous explosion for duck hunting, so would not have been widely used by 1826!
Yes, I'm not entirely sure what constituted a Bowie knife way back when as the blade shape, finger guard/no finger guard could be different. Went down an internet rabbit hole on Bowie's knife and there is a picture of a knife Bowie may have used. It looked like a large butcher knife that had the hump on the spine ground down to look more like a big French style trade knife. Was it the Bowie knife, who knows. A nice example of a Sheffield Bowie knife (preferably with a stag handle) is on my grail list, it will happen.
In Bram Stoker's Dracula, the Count is laid to rest by none other then? You will kindly recall....and of course the very best Bowie movie is "Iron Mistress" with Allen Lad. Total fiction, fine film nonetheless.
Oh yeah, I forgot; Yes, please.
I have enjoyed the history behind all of the weapons esp those of N. America like the Bowie & Tomahawks
Very nice and very true. The Bowie knife was a bit outdated in the 1880's. Probably it had its last real peek in the American Civil War, but that's it.
The "Wild West" is usually seen as the 70's and 80's of the 19th century.
Like the Seax.. variations in design probably based on hearsay. Any period drawings or pictures you've seen of supposed original?
I like Bowie knives, but I do not think I like Bowie, being of the woke persuasion do I have to bin my knives now? FWIW going back to the late 19th century, Dracula's opponents were armed with a Bowie knife and a Khukri, they were already iconic weapons. I bought my first Bowie with my pocket money I had saved up when I was 13 and wore it on my belt when out in the sticks. Different times.
The third knife that you showed is not a Bowie knife. It's an Arkansas toothpick. Basically a large dagger.
Born and raised in Texas. The original Bowie knife (according to what I've read) had meteorite forged into the steel. Also, we say in Texas, "ya ain't gotta reload a knife". Which would be better than a single shot round ball handgun. A good Bowie knife would also be the perfect "jack of all" edge tool/weapon. I actually carry a Spyderco Street Bowie every day, even though it's only a 5" blade. And it serves more as a kitchen knife than anything, except maybe a box opener. lol
If American congressmen still carried Bowie knives, the country might look a bit different now hahaha.
Hey Matt, I did a thing. I commented on another content creators video on JB about his slaver background, bc it was left out of their presentation(info I got from your vid BTW). Then next thing I’ve been declared a winner of a free Bowie knife by the author. I turned it down of course bc nothing is free. LOL
Thank you, Matt Eastern, for your wonderfully informative videos.
Yes. I would love for you to do more videos about the history of the Bowie knife.
I particularly admire the large Sheffield Bowie knife you held up the most in this video and am curious about how long the blade is as it seems to be at least ten inches long. How long is it?
Thank you.
5:11 The Indian Territory is essentially Oklahoma (which became a state in 1907).
The original Bowie knife was actually not shaped like Bowie knives that followed years later.. the original Bowie knife was made by blacksmith for Jim Bowie's brother Resin Bowie .. it actually resembled a large chefs knife..... Later on the clip point was added.. and we got the shape that were most familiar with nowadays.
I'm going to imagine the word blurred was a slur for Mexicans but would they bother in a newspaper archive? The battle was in the Mexican American war
Apologies??? Oh I get it you're woke...
What do you identify as???
The fight that made Jim Bowie famous was on September 16, 1827.
As I understand it Jim Bowie's knife looked more like a meat cleaver with a spike point .
The most over blown knife on Earth in my opinion..From the time I was 10 until about 30 years ago it's all you heard about.
I have to say I've had enough that I could live the rest of my life without ever seeing another one.
From eyewitness accounts, the knife James Bowie (BOO-EEE) used at the infamous Sandbar Fight was a Spanish style hunting knife rather than the clipped point "Bowie" knife! Of course, in 19th Century English, the term "Bowie knife" came to refer to just about any large bladed, single-edged knife. Here is a link to a picture of the original style of "Bowie knife" : upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Fowlerkn.JPG
I heard it was a butchers knife or a large kitchen knife of some sort.
@@arc0006 From what I've read, the type of Spanish hunting knife Bowie carried to the Sandbar Fight had a blade pattern much like the butcher knives of the time period because like butcher knives they were meant for dismembering a dead animal. Also, the butcher knives of the time period were not the fat style of knife now called a butcher knife.
@@bubbagump2341 Interesting, that made me think of something I saw about a Spanish fighting manual on knife fighting. Guess the Spaniards were big on stabbing each other.
@@arc0006 Indeed, carrying and fighting with knives was very popular throughout the Spanish Empire/Spanish speaking world!
the history of history
Since you are in the UK, I wonder if you might have any information on a knife I found in the desert of Nevada years ago. I don't know if it could be considered a "Bowie".
It is stamped "Marsh Bros & Co. Celebrated Cutlery". The little bit of info I was able to find on the Marsh Bros. indicated to me that it was made in England, possibly about 1860-1890.
When I found it, the handle was long gone. Not knowing anything about old knives, I cleaned it up a little and wrapped the tang with leather shoelace and heat shrink and proceeded to use it as a camp knife, mostly for cooking and such. The steel is very hard, and holds a good razor sharp edge.
Recently, I thought I might re-handle it, and that's when I discovered the stamping on the base of the blade.
It also says "American Hunter" on the side of the blade. My ambitious idea to make the handle out of jade has been postponed until I try some easier material first. (various reasons for that)
Here is a couple of slide shows I made of it.
th-cam.com/video/F-b4lRfpjhY/w-d-xo.html th-cam.com/video/gu74nkQbPzY/w-d-xo.html
Any help you can be would be greatly appreciated.
PS I looked on the British Newspaper site but no luck so far. (They have a lot to look through; I need to figure out how to narrow it down.)
Hiya, Matt.
Which of your videos focuses on the the British hunting knives you mention? Have you ever heard or read of them being referred to as "English Bowie knives?"
I'd like to hear about how people actually used these types of weapons... I'm sure there are some detailed accounts. Then I'd love to see a mock up of those kinds of uses of a gelatin dummy or the like :)
Maybe one to do with Tod - make the weapon, read how it was used and then test it in that manner, then discuss!