How did the Bowie legend spread?

Thanks everyone, I really enjoyed your thoughts. I have looked and perused The Bowie Knife Book by Flan. The Bowie knife was most likely a big butcher knife similar to the Searles knife that Rezin had made. The article I read in Knifeworld had a pretty good deduction that the knife in a painting of Rezin was the Schively (sp?) Perkins knife, but it is in the style of that first knife. With the spread of the sandbar fight results, the word Bowie no doubt came to describe any large knife and the styles went from there.
Keep the thoughts coming....it is fun and very interesting to see how the "knife like Bowie's" came to include alot of different styles. Blade magazine is also doing a series on the early bowie knives, so check it out.
 
In reply to the question of the bowie's reputation it seems that I must agree to the fact that word of mouth and the occasional newspaper spread the fame of Jim Bowie. In the 19th century everything was concerned with reputation and a mans ability to overcome obstacles on the frontier. We must also remember that the old south of pre-civil war was a place of status and bravado were men were could be judged on the fabled exploits and the stories grew over time just as our fishing stories do now. For jim Bowie to survive the sandbar attack was in my opinion a mix of his being at the wrong place at the correct time in history for everything to happen as it did. Just as today, the company we keep can support us or destroy us. To be in the company of rough men you must become a rough and ready man yourself. This was I doubt Jim Bowie,s first time to be confronted with life and death. His actions coupled with an overwhelming desire to survive and his aggressive attitude to meet danger head on and the blade that he carried showed that he wanted to be ready to fight in a manner up close and personal.

As far as origins of the design I see a real similarity with the Scottish Dirk. and even the Roman Short Sword as would relate to the Arkansas Toothpick side of the lineage. Gentle folk do not tend to carry or even own weapons. While they may have tools and things to use in defense, the bowie knife was much like our Sikes Fairborn or any other CQB implement of today. It was an offensive weapon. Drawn and used most likley by a man that was used to fighting and surviving.
 
Arkansas Toothpick was just another name for a Bowie knife, most etched that way were actually clipped points. The State also changed depending on who they were selling the knife too.

The Arkansas Toothpick as a large dagger is a modern invention.

:).
 
In aanother forum site, we got to the point that the legend spread because of word of mouth and the desire for a great story......the discussion also ventured into the actual bowie knife and how the Edwin Forest knife may be the first Bowie knife.....opinions varied, but the story is a good one. Rezin had the Schively Perkins and the Searles bowies made to cash in the fame of his brother's fight. They would be more refined than the basic long butcher style knife and would sell better. Also, the Forest knife was supposedly given to Forest, a well known actor of the day, by Bowie in New Orleans as he recovered from his wounds from the sandbar fight. The knife stayed in the family and the story never changed from Forest's orignal telling. More so, the knife was found in a display case he built for it when the family's estate was being settled. Interesting thoughts from Mike Stewart and one to get me doing more research and reading. Carry on.....this is really becoming interesting. And yes, it has swayed off my original post, but let's keep going.
 
i am re-reading a book about the Alamo and it says the knife he carried at the sandbar fight was pretty much just a butcher knife which his brother had made a sheath for, after that fight he had another made up and its not known if bowie or the unknown 'smith designed it, supposedly the knife on display at the Alamo is pretty close to the original design, maybe, possibly, they just cant be sure.

IIRC his brother rezin had a lotta knives made up as presentation pieces to give away as gifts/etc and they were also similar to the coffin handled knife on display at the Alamo, in fact IIRC the knife at the Alamo was given to the Alamo by rezin.
 
Can you provide any info or sources where I can do some more research about the knife the Alamo has, that Rezin may have given to them? I have been referred back to Flayeton (sp?) book on bowies since I was looking for more info on the Forest Knife. Just have to find a copy to look through again. I did look through at a gun show, and I do remember something about the knife at the Alamo museum.
 
I'm sure that in the day of the single shot cap and ball guns many folk carried a knife that could be both utility and defense. Along comes Jim Bowie and he becomes the romantic ideal. Still is. And many folks still want that knife like Bowies. I have more than a few myself.

But as I understand it, the idea of the Bowie as a dedicated fighting/dueling weapon with all the trapping and backcutting came from the fencing salles of the South who were running out of students because carrying a sword had fallen from style.

They adopted different fencing techniques, including and perhaps predominantly, saber, for use with the "Bowie" knife. Some fun.
 
cbach8tw said:
Can you provide any info or sources where I can do some more research about the knife the Alamo has, that Rezin may have given to them? I have been referred back to Flayeton (sp?) book on bowies since I was looking for more info on the Forest Knife. Just have to find a copy to look through again. I did look through at a gun show, and I do remember something about the knife at the Alamo museum.
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"the Alamo story" by JR Edmondson is what i'm re-reading and its got a chapter dedicted to bowie FWIW and a lot about his early pre-Alamo life.

according to that book a lotta folks still carried sword canes and some thought it low rent to carry a knife for fighting before bowie popularised them, it wasnt socially acceptable, sword canes and pistols were more the norm then among "gentleman".
 
InfidelShootist said:
"Rezin Bowie said, "The length of the blade was nine and one-quarters inches, its width one and one-half inches, single edged and not curved" …quite different from the Bowie knife as it came to be recognized. 4 "

I believe the knife used by Bowie at the sandbar fight probably looked like this one carried by Wild Bill Hickok.
Regardless,the knife is secondary to me as the mind-set that Bowie had in the fight.
No blade trapping,Spanish notches or back cuts were necessary in that fight.
A never give up, aggressive attitude was.
Same with Wild Bill,it wasn't the .36 caliber 1851 Navy revolvers that made the man,it was skill and mind-set.

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You hit the nail on the head man.. I call it a pitbull mentality and it's something ya can't teach! But can achieve If ya got it in ya....
 
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