How Ironic.....

[woseyjales]

That there is no place appropriate to post this knife in a forum that is titled General Knife Discussion.

Until now.
1972 Bowen Knife Co. 'the General'

[FRJ]

That's a fine looking stockman, wosey.
Never heard of Bowen.

[rangerbluedog]

Aha! I get it..... "General" .... haha
Nice knife Wosey. I had heard of this knife, but never seen one!
And you got the box too!

I wonder if they ever made a matching knife called the "Texas"?

[orvet]

I think I have a pamphlet from Bowden from the 1980s.
They were most noted for their belt buckle fixed blade knives that used the belt as a sheath.

I will see if I can find the flyer and scan it.
I have seen some of their buckle knives and they are really nice and appear to be quality knives.

[orvet]

I found the flyer. It was 1992 & not from the 1980s as I thought.
Here are the scans below.
It appears they are still in business.
Here is their web site: http://bowenknife.com/products_main.shtml

[jerryd6818]

You can have your Bowen Knife demagnetized.

Only $7.00


WTF???

[woseyjales]

You can have your Bowen Knife demagnetized.
Only $7.00 WTF???

With my luck first time thru the airport scanner it would get remagnetized.
Must be another profit margin booster, kind of like auto dealer's
fabric and paint protector package but different.
Does sound like a bargain tho.

Blue, some folks may not know the General train had a twin
locomotive named the Texas. After all the General went through
it's amazing it's still around. I think it is now in a museum in Kennesaw Ga.
Have no idea if the Texas survived also, 156 years is a long time.

I think this knife was Bowen's first production.
LC has a Collins Brothers large stockman (8OT size)
which has same style wood handles & slanted bolsters.
Goins shows Collins Bros sold to Bowen in 1973 but
the General (34OT size) tang carries 1972 date.

I have one other railroad themed knife.
Maybe when the Bowen discussion dries up
we can merge over into railroad knives or
post other worthy misfits with no place to go.

Just a thought, nothing carved in silly putty yet.

Dale, thanks for posting the Bowen info.
'80s, '90s, 10yrs pretty close in the multi-
billion dollar cutlery bidniss.
Time sure flies when you're not paying attention, don't it?

[jerryd6818]

Wosey,

Found this in Wikipedia:

The Texas is a type 4-4-0 steam locomotive that played an important role in the Great Locomotive Chase during the American Civil War. The locomotive is preserved at the Atlanta Cyclorama building within Grant Park in Atlanta, Georgia. The Texas is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

By the way, that's a fine looking knife. From the picture, it looks like a high quality item.

[woseyjales]

Thanks Jerry,
The Great Locomotive Chase mentioned involved
some spies stealing the General in 'Lanta and fleeing
north abandoning it between Ringgold Ga. & Chattanooga.
The Texas I think was used in the high speed pursuit
to recover it's sister choo-choo.
They were constructed in PA during Dec.1855-Jan.1856.
Wonder how many miles they have on their odometers by now?

[rangerbluedog]

A little bit of Andrews Raid trivia: Not many people know that the Texas was actually chasing the General IN REVERSE!
There was also another engine used by the Confederates in this chase - a little engine used in the operation of Mark Anthony Cooper's Ironworks in Etowah. This little engine was used to chase the General until they ran across the Texas. The name of the engine was the YONAH.
I don't know what happened to the YONAH, but the blast furnace used in Coopers Ironworks still stands, behind Lake Altoona dam. http://roadsidegeorgia.com/site/cooperiron.html
The foundation for the RR bridge that crossed Etowah River still stands also!
http://www.greatlocomotivechase.com
http://ngeorgia.com/history/raiders.html

My name is Blue, and I am a history nerd...
P.S. Forgot to mention the "William R. Smith" engine, also used by the Confederates (after the Yonah, before the Texas)

[Outlaw358]

Nice knife...

[woseyjales]

Here's the Collins Bros large stockman that preceded
the General's production by new owner, Bowen Knife Co.
Thanks for the pic permission LC.

[knife7knut]

Here's a couple of Bowen pieces:
First is two of their belt buckle knives(I don't have the belts)and a knockoff with brass buckle.Not a bad copy.
Second is their R1306 Baby Bullet made sometime in the early 1970's.
I think I have more Bowen knives but will have to check.

[johnnierotten]

Blue, some folks may not know the General train had a twin
locomotive named the Texas. After all the General went through
it's amazing it's still around. I think it is now in a museum in Kennesaw Ga.
Have no idea if the Texas survived also, 156 years is a long time.

Top one is the " General"....bottom is the "Texas"..........The knives were made in 1977.

[thehillshaveknives]

i have a few belt knives but idont carry them

[woseyjales]

First I've heard/seen of those two Johnny.
Looks like a nice set.

My Case train knife is just a tad more recent, from 1982.
I don't know much about it but apparently the Cincinnati
Union Terminal closed in 1982 after 50 yrs in service and
somebody decided to issue some commem knives.

This one is a 6292, I have seen a 278 type pen with same
blade etch many yrs ago in an eekBay auction.
Maybe the AAPK buckeyes can fill in the rest of the C.U.T. details.