Hibbard Spencer Bartlett Knife

[chrisbraypi]

Trying to identify and date this knife that was owned by my wife's grandfather, who lived in the Chicago area much of his life. He was fairly well off financially and generally didn't purchase poor quality items (like, I have and wear a vintage watch of his that I was able to date back to the early 60s and confirmed it was one of the first "self-winders" - it's pretty cool).

I've inspected this knife for stamping that might give a clue, but nothing. Some interesting features of the knife would be the beveled back and swedge, and the deep cut under the back/swedge for opening. The blade leans toward a Kukri shape, although not as pronounced as others I've seen.

The handle is made of some kind of dark hardwood. Another interesting feature is the tiny hole that runs through the handle, that I assume is for attaching a lanyard or a clip for a lanyard.

So if anybody has an idea of how to date this knife, I'd appreciate it. I've read the history of Hibbard Spencer Bartlett & Co. and their wares from the mid-to-late 1800s all the way through their sale to True Value in 1962. Our grandfather (1905-1998) moved to Highland Park, IL in 1935 and later lived in Barrington, IL and was a very successful businessman.

I'm attaching images for everyone to see. Thanks in advance for any insight.

Chris

[ScoutKnives]

Probably made by New York knife company who went out of business in 1931 .

Mike

[Mumbleypeg]

Very nice old “Coke bottle” pattern, very popular in the first half of the 20th century. Lots of cutleries made them. The hole you describe may have been for a bail, to which a chain or lanyard could be attached. The wood handle covers are possibly ebony wood but could be any of several other woods (rosewood, cocobola, etc.). Difficult to say without having it in hand, depending on how much it has darkened with time and handling)

Welcome to AAPK, and thanks for showing it.

Ken

[stockman]

I would agree with Mike New York Co. Nice knife Harold

[Boji]

If you didn't find it your research, the OVB stand for Our Very Best.

[chrisbraypi]

Great info. Yes, Boji it didnt take long to figure out the OVB, which is what led me to HSB&Co and this forum. The tip from ScoutKnives and Stockman to look at NYK was a solid lead. On another website's forum, a few guys opined that HSB&Co actually manufactured very little - they were more known for stamping their brand on products manufactured by others. I seem to remember reading that about them too in some historical literature by the Chicago History Museum. As a matter of fact, I found an image (see below) of another knife and the info was that it was a NYK product. The only difference was the blade style and the stamp was Hammer. So given that Grandpa John moved to Chicago from DC in 1935, its interesting to note that before that, he went to Cornell University in New York sometime around 1925 - five or six years before NYK shuttered. Seems to fit, era-wise.

So I'm guessing the bottom line on placing an actual date on the knife would be difficult - unlike my Buck 110 that was issued to me by the USN that is stamped with a code that checks back to 1978. But I guess they didn't do that kind of stuff back then (or, at least, NYK didn't). So assuming it was purchased new by Grandpa John, we're probably looking at a knife circa 1925. Then again, it could've belonged to Grandpa John's father...

Okay, so on restoration. I think I have a gem here and I'd really like to bring the blade back to life - but I don't want to remove the stamping because that's part of its history. Any suggestions?

[msteele6]

Be very careful with any cleaning, that etch on the blade is one of the most important features of the knife. The knife looks to be in really good shape for its age and I would do very little to clean, maybe the bolster. Great old knife

[Reverand]

That knife is a beauty! Several hardware businesses contracted knives made by different manufacturers, and HSB usually paid for a quality product. It is a shame that most older knives had no date code, but they only made knives to be used: They didn't dream of people collecting them!
This is such a quality example that I would hesitate to do much in the way of "restoring". Most of that destroys the value of the knife.
If it has lint and dirt in the blade well, clean that with non abrasives (cloth and popsicle sticks). If you use water, flush with WD40 and compressed air.
Oil the blade and joint, and perhaps polish the handles and bolster with Renwax or similar product.
Polishing the blade to make it shiny is really the worst thing to do. The blade etch will disappear forever, and the metal finish will not look the same again.
Of course, the greatest value is the sentimental value. Personally I would oil it and carry it only on special occasions.

[peanut740]

Probably made by New York knife company who went out of business in 1931 .

Mike

Agreed.

[peanut740]

In my opinion, the etch is the most important feature of your knife.You buff the blade and you lose the etch,and you just have a very common shiney knife.

[peanut740]

Here's what the knife looked like orginally.

[chrisbraypi]

Roger - that's a beautiful knife. Thanks to all for the input on restoration. Yes, the stamp and etching is part of its history so I certainly don't want to lose that.

I think this will just go into my collection and I'll do some research with my father-in-law to see if he has any knowledge of his dad carrying this knife. It's my understanding that as a child, Grandpa John was a member of one the first official Boy Scout troops, and we learned about this when we came across his personal edition of "Scouting for Boys". This only adds intrigue to the story of my knife because NYK claimed to make the official Boy Scout Knife. It makes me wonder if someone in the family has one of those early BSA knives.

Anyway - there's certainly some history to this relic and I'm glad it's still in the family.