All About Pocket Knives

One advantage of joining a local knife club is the contacts you make and the people you meet. My local club is OKCA, (Oregon Knife Collectors Association).

If you are a long time Knife World reader you may remember the name of ibdennis; a.k.a. Dennis Ellingston. A number of his articles have been published in Knife World.
Here are a few items shared with me by Dennis Ellingston.

About 1976 Dennis made a trip back to the Camillus factory. He shared with me (thank you Dennis), a few of the things he brought home from his visit.

The first is a medallion from the Camillus Centennial.
Next are some matches.
Lastly is a sticker from the first 100 years of Camillus Cutlery Co.
I hope you enjoy these.

Dale

i was born in 1976................................





i'd put the sticker on ma' tool box

Here is some more memorabilia from the Camillus factory. Both items are courtesy of Tom Williams, who was the Camillus company Historian.

Tom worked for Camillus for 30 years and his mother worked for Camillus for 53 years. His father worked there for a few years as well as did many members of his family. Camillus Cutlery Co. was really the industry around which the Village of Camillus NY revolved.

The first item is a Camillus patch that Tom Williams gave me. It could be used on a ball cap or on a jacket.
This next item is unique. It is a bag-velope by Curtis 1000 Inc. It is too big to scan on my scanner at one time so I scanned it with folded.

These are a combination envelop and bag that Camillus used for knife repairs. The incoming knife was placed in the bag-velope until such time as repairman fixed the knife. Then they could be used to mail the repaired knife back to the customer.

Do any of you recall getting a repaired Camillus knife back in such a bag-velope?

Dale

That is all great stuff.
The OKCA is the best knife club, without doubt.
Dennis and I have communicated for years, now, and I displayed at the Eugene April show in 2001. Great trip.

I don't think Dennis has a "t" in his name, though. It's just "Ellingson"

Too bad there wasn't some "Stimulous" money to keep Camillus in business.

Charlie Noyes

I just checked the latest issue of OKCA "Knewsletter."
We were both wrong.

He spells it: Ellingsen.

Dale

Here is a centennial #23
Its like new in the box unsharpened and dont think it was even carried much or at all
The second knife is a 100th anniversary penknife with a medalion

The US Bicentennial was the 100th Anniversary of Camillus.
Here is a 1976 Camillus stockman.

Dale

Nice knife Dale
Is that a #69 stockman itlooks to be in great shape

Yes Trav it is.
It looks like your 23 was left in the box as well.

Here is a #23 ad knife I have had for 2 or 3 years.

Dale

Here's one, not quite centennial, but real close. Nice LITTLE knife, 2 5/8" closed.

Tj those Indian stags are some of my favorites
and Dale those #23s are a handfull of knife shes a beeeuty

Indian Stag = Delrin or some other man-made material, right.

Yes its a delrin , in the catalogs they call it Indian Stag
Travis

You know, as I think about it, and I know I shouldn't, that little No. 70 was pretty expensive at $10 in 1975. I do believe that if Camillus had used natural materials instead of man-made, they would have been much more collectible. The knife itself is way better than the handles.

These are long service pins given to Camillus employees. I have 10, 20, 25, 30 & 40 years, I don't know if other years were used. I got these off eBay just after the factory closed.