Antique New York Knife Company Knives and Company History

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Thanks fellas,Steve your pictures are always professional ,and your knives are lovely specimens.
 
Walden History

The first inhabitants along the banks of the Wallkill or Paltz River in the vicinity of present day Walden were Native Americans who followed the receding glacier into the river valley. The Wallkill River Valley was a transportation and trading route for early inhabitants as well as a place for settlements.

Europeans began to arrive within the Wallkill River Valley as early as the 1650s.

By the early 1700s, Europeans began to establish homesteads and permanent settlements along the Wallkill. On the east bank of the Wallkill, the first settlement was established in and around the high falls of the Wallkill. Henry Wileman received a grant of 3,000 acres of land upon which Wileman Town was built after 1713. (Source: Marc Newman: Images of America Walden & Maybrook, Arcadia Publishing, 2002.)

Most of the early settlers were farmers, craftsmen, or traders. By the mid 18th century, the Wallkill River in the vicinity of the high falls was being harnessed for her water power. In 1813, Jacob Treadwell Walden, a New York City entrepreneur began purchasing land on both sides of the Wallkill to develop a manufacturing settlement that would harness the water power of the high falls of the Wallkill River.

Thereafter, maps were prepared, for a planned community of industrial, business and residential sites called the Village of Walden. By the 1820s, Jacob T. Waldens mill was creating cotton and woolen cloth for New York consumers through the power of the mighty Wallkill. (Source: Marc Newman: Images of America Walden & Maybrook, Arcadia Publishing 2002.)

By the 1840s Walden was a major woolen manufacturing center in Orange County. The focus of production shifted from textiles to cutlery when in 1856 the New York Knife Company moved to the idle cotton factory. Walden would see the establishment of two more knife factories with Walden Knife Company in the 1870s and Schrade Cutlery in 1904.

Soon thereafter, Walden would earn its title as the Little Sheffield as it became the cutlery capital of the United States. Cutlery remained a major industry until the 1950s when Schrade cutlery was relocated to Ellenville. Vestiges of the knife industry remain, from the dam at high falls to the McKinley Statue. The Village and historical society are hoping to create a Knife Museum to preserve the Villages rich history and its contributions to the Nation. In the 1930s and 1950s Walden was also a center for the garment industry with sewing facilities on the upper floors of the Walker Building, the Wooster Building, and other sites. Women comprised 90% of the garment workforce with workspace on the upper floors of buildings such as the Walker Building.
 
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Works of the New York Knife Co., Walden, N.Y.; Water Power Plant of the Wallkill River Co.
From the Library of Congress ( Tiff available here http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2013647118/)
Taken in 1909 by D.E. Ryan

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Thank you for that Gevonivich. :thumbup:;):)

I am feeling another display board from the post card. :eek::D (Well - not really)

I am going to post a larger version on page one.
 
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Wow, thanks guys, this is a history lesson I can get behind. Very nive hardware and the research and insight is priceless.

Peace and Love
JustDave
 
Employees at the New York Knife Company:
 
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Man, that's some great history! Can you imagine, before Unions, safety regulations and the like. Lop off a finger and that was just one of the many hazards of the job.
Perry
 
It was reported that, in the old days of Walden and as the NYKC prospered, so did the town of Walden.
 
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This thread just gets better and better. Great work Primble on putting this together, I know it is very time consuming. Thank you! :)
Thank you Gev for your history contributions as well.

Started procuring materials for my display cabinet and I am pretty excited to receive the display photo from Primble. I also have three more NYKC Hammer knives arriving this week and will post photo's when they arrive. Thank you to all involved, you know who you are....;)
 
Markesharp said:
I also have three more NYKC Hammer knives arriving this week and will post photo's when they arrive. Thank you to all involved, you know who you are....;)
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Does that include the one (or MAYBE two) that I am sending you Mark? I am still debating about the two - you already have my best one!!!

The knife or knives will ride along with the prints to Jackson. ;)

I wonder - are you keeping an eye out for Primble's Catts? :eek::eek::eek::D
 
Primble said:
Does that include the one (or MAYBE two) that I am sending you Mark? I am still debating about the two - you already have my best one!!!

The knife or knives will ride along with the prints to Jackson. ;)

I wonder - are you keeping an eye out for Primble's Catts? :eek::eek::eek::D
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No, that does not include the TWO :eek: you ARE sending me! :eek::eek::D:D;) I am ALWAYS looking for Primble Catts and I will grab any available and send them to Kentucky! :thumbup::D
 
Tremendous atmosphere on this thread. Wealth of historical images&analysis, remarkable knives and Primble survives self-immolation :D:D:thumbup:

Thanks in particular to Charles and Lyle for Olympian examples.

Regards, Will
 
One of the best threads I have come across on BF. A real delight and I have enjoyed it immensely. Thank you!
 
ptradeco said:
One of the best threads I have come across on BF. A real delight and I have enjoyed it immensely. Thank you!
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And it's a great education for new collectors like myself who are in part interested because of all the history involved - history of a village, the land, the workers, the entrepreneurs -- just incredible. My favorite non-knife photos so far are the photos and drawings of the knifeworks in it's prime and the site now that mother nature has reclaimed parts of it. :D

I'm also saving lots of this information in my new computer folder dedicated to New York Knife Co. :cool:
 
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