All About Pocket Knives

KA-BAR's historical lineage

The historical lineage of KA-BAR began with a group of 38 men who
applied on April 29, 1897 as an association to the Secretary of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to form a Limited Partnership whose
purpose was to manufacture and sell cutlery. The formation of this
Limited Partnership, known as Tidioute Cutlery Company, is now widely
considered to be the beginnings of KA-BAR's history. Although the
partnership was formed in 1897, it is believed that cutlery items
were not produced or sold until 1898. As a result, we consider 1898
KA-BAR's founding year.
Experiencing financial difficulties, not unlike many knife
manufacturers at the time, the Tidioute Cutlery Company was dissolved
at the turn of the century. In January 1902, Mr. Wallace R. Brown, a
young man much involved in the industry, purchased the assets of the
company. By March, a new association headed by Mr. Brown applied to
the Governor of Pennsylvania to form a corporation, to be known as
the Union Razor Company, for the purpose of manufacturing and selling
cutlery. Within just one month the company was in full operation with
Brown serving as Chairman and CEO.
On January 25, 1909, after operating under the Union Razor name for
less than a decade, Brown and the Board of Directors decided that the
company's name was no longer representative of its expanding product
line and changed its name from Union Razor Company to Union Cutlery
Company.
Shortly after the company's name change, in 1910, the City of Olean,
New York, approached Wallace Brown and the company's Directors and
proposed for the company to relocate its operations to their city.
Within one year, the Union Cutlery Company was convinced that Olean,
New York was the best site for their "new" operation and by December
of 1911, efforts were underway to move the company. A new State of
New York corporation was registered as the Union Cutlery Company,
Olean, New York, creating two Union Cutlery Company incorporations:
the original in Tidioute, Pennsylvania and the one set up by Wallace
Brown in Olean, New York. With the Olean facility operating
successfully, the Tidioute, Pennsylvania plant was closed down and by
1912, operations were in full swing at Union Cutlery Company's new
location at 434 North Ninth Street, Olean, New York.
In the 1920s, when the company began to prosper and grow, there was a
transition period of mixed markings which embellished the blades and
handles of the older Union Razor knives and newer model Union Cutlery
knives. During this period trademarks like OLCUT, KEENWELL, and the
now-famous, KABAR were adopted.

How KA-BAR became KA-BAR

Soon after its introduction, the KA-BAR trademark became widely known
and respected. There have been many versions of how the KA-BAR name
was adopted, but all evidence points to a letter received from a fur
trapper. This particular fur trapper's testimonial turned out to be
one of the most significant ever received by the Company. He wrote,
in very rough English, that his gun had jammed and that he had
therefore relied on his knife to kill a wounded bear that was
attacking him. In thanking the company for their quality product, the
trapper described using his knife to "kill a bar." The way his
writing was scrawled across the paper it looked like "ka bar." The
company adapted his writing and adopted it as their trademark, KA-BAR.

Dan Brown's leadership: World War II to 1960

Overseeing many successful years of the Union Razor and Union
Cutlery Company business, Wallace Brown fell ill and died in June of
1924. His brother, Emerson Brown, was quick to assume the role of
authority at the company, but his tenure was cut short. Emerson
Brown, President from 1924 to 1931, was superseded in 1931 by his
nephew, Danforth Brown, son of the original Chairman and CEO, Wallace
R. Brown.
Danforth Brown lead the company through many changes: some positive,
some nearly detrimental to the life of this legendary company. The
first real challenge Dan Brown was faced with as the new President of
Union Cutlery Company, was to supply the military during its defense
efforts of World War II.
Soon after the start of World War II, the Union Cutlery Company
submitted a KA-BAR branded knife to the U.S. Marine Corps for issue
to fighting personnel. Although the original design presented was not
up to par, the Marine Corps accepted a reworked design of the knife
and began issuing it as their standard fighting / utility knife in
1945. During the War, due to the dependable serviceability of the
knife, now known as the Original USMC Fighting / Utility Knife, other
branches of the armed services adopted the knife. Union Cutlery's
wartime production totaled more than 1 million knives. Even though
many other fighting / utility knives were issued under other company
trademarks, they all became known affectionately as "KA-BARS." This
due to their quality, abundance and the fact that many men relied on
these knives for their everyday tasks such as repairing equipment,
digging fox holes, sharpening tent stakes, opening ration cans and
often defending their own lives. Other knives were manufactured for
the military by KA-BAR during World War II as well. Some of these
include the Tl29 Electrician's Knife and a rigging knife used by the
Navy and Coast Guard. The World War II KA-BARS did their job so
effectively that similar versions were used in the Korean, Vietnam
and Desert Storm conflicts although the production of the KA-BAR
fighting / utility knife ceased immediately following the end of
World War II.
By 1952 the KA-BAR name had achieved such a high level of fame that
Danforth Brown and the directors of the company decided to change the
corporate name to KA-BAR Cutlery, Inc., dropping the Union Cutlery
name entirely.
One difficulty under Danforth Brown's leadership was his unsuccessful
attempt to transfer the manufacturing operations from New York to
Dawsonville, Georgia in 1954. This experiment lasted only one year.
The company was then regrouped back in Olean at its original factory
site. Fortunately, the manufacturing facilities in the Olean plant
were not completely discontinued, so the retreat was accomplished
without a great deal of disruption in production.

Reviving the brand

After Danforth Brown's death in March of 1960, the company changed
hands several times. In 1961, the Brown family sold KA-BAR to two
Olean businessmen who in turn sold it to a group of business
entrepreneurs that eventually led the company into Chapter 11.
Unfortunately, attempts to reorganize failed and the company was
forced into liquidation. With intentions of re-establishing the
business, Robinson Knife Company purchased the assets of the company,
but in 1966 ended up selling the KA-BAR operations to Cole National
Corporation in Cleveland, Ohio.
Cole, already involved somewhat in the cutlery business and
experienced as an aggressive marketing operation, started to rebuild
the KA-BAR name and product line. The entire product line was
reorganized with emphasis on a moderately broad range of folding
knives. A line of fixed blade hunting knives was also implemented
which focused on KA-BAR's well-known leather handle construction. In
addition, in 1975, as a part of its efforts to revive the company, KA-
BAR also established and supported a special Collectors' Division.
Its purpose was to produce significant and commemorative knives, to
recreate famous antique KA-BAR knives and actively support the
development and enjoyment of knife collecting in general.
The first knife produced by the new Collectors Club was in response
to public demand for the reintroduction of the knife made famous in
World War II. A full-dress version of the U.S.M.C. Fighting / Utility
Knife was produced in limited number and released by the Club in
1976. It was a beautifully etched and gold filled fixed blade fighter
made to the exact specifications, with exception of embellishments,
of the original used during WWII. The knife would commemorate 200
years of service to the nation by the United States Marine Corps. The
U.S.M.C. Commemorative was so enthusiastically received that one year
later, the company returned the knife, in its standard issue form, to
regular production.
A short time later, Cole National Corporation went into a period of
business difficulty that put the company into bankruptcy in 1982.
During liquidation the KA-BAR product line was purchased by American
Consumer Products and eventually moved to Solon, Ohio. American
Consumer Products, already involved in the cutlery business, rebuilt
the business and operated it until June 1996, when the KA-BAR product
line and assets were sold to Alcas Corporation of Olean, New York.

KA-BAR Knives Limited Lifetime Warranty

KA-BAR Knives Inc. (the "Company") warrants, to the original
purchaser of this knife only, that this knife will be free from
defects in material and craftsmanship under normal use and
maintenance for the lifetime of the original purchaser. This Limited
Warranty does not apply to any failure of, defect in, or damage to
the knife caused by improper use, including using the blade as a can
opener, chisel, pry bar, screw driver, digging tool, or for any heavy
work for which the knife was not designed.
If the knife fails to satisfy the Limited Warranty, the Company will
repair or replace the knife, at the Company's option, and such repair
or replacement shall constitute the sole remedy for any failure of
the knife to satisfy this Limited Warranty or any implied warranty
(ies) of the Company.

In order to obtain performance of this Limited Warranty, you must
return the knife, at your own expense and risk, to:

KA-BAR Knives Inc.
Attention: Customer Service Department.
1125 East State Street
Olean, NY 14760