So many knives from Titusville..?

G

gmkmd

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Dec 27, 2006
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I’m just dabbling in knife collecting, so please forgive my ignorance. I’m wondering why there are so many knife brands which all seem to come from the same factory in Titusville. Schadt & Morgan, Tidioute, Queen City, and several more, seem to be sold as different brands, but the style and packaging suggest that they all being made by the same company in Titusville, PA. Is it just a marketing gimmick to make them seem more collectible, or is there more to it?

Also, does anyone else think they are very overpriced for the quality? They make lots of cool designs, for sure. But the ones that I’ve bought, and more that I’ve handled at shows, have flaws in fit & finish, blade alignment & tightness, and thinness of materials that you don’t see on significantly cheaper knives, such as Buck, Case, AG Russell, and others.

What do the experts think?
 
GPO MAN said:
S&M is owned by Cooper Cutlery and made in Winchester, Ohio.
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NOW. Prior to their bankruptcy (and of sister company Queen) in 2018 or 2019, Queen/S&M were made in Titusville. (In the early years (pre WW1) they were made in Michigan.)

Cooper bought all the rights to both Queen and S&M, along with some (all) of the tooling.
Cooper later sold the Queen/Queen City brands to SMKW in TN.
They were made offshore for a few years. I believe some are made in the USA again, but I don't know who makes them for SMKW.
 
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Time frame is an important context, youll have to be a smidge more specific as the other commenters have detailed the change in ownership. For example, Queen and Schatt and Morgan was great. However at some point the brand changed hands I believe, and more recently, Bill Howard left Queen/Schatt and Morgan and took his skills with him to found his own firm, Great Eastern Cutlery. notable members such as knowtracks knowtracks as well as the others commenters present have wonderful collections of Queen and Schatt and Morgan from all its eras even till its downfall. Other members have even commissioned some work!

Price is a different matter and often a matter of perspective and opinion. For example early collectors of GEC knives may find the current prices a bit exorbitant, some have given up or scaled back. There was about a good 10-12 years where the prices were fairly reasonable until interest exploded. Stick around the forums a bit and you'll see what I mean! Unfortunately when interested exploded, rising tides raises all ships, so other brands like CSC for example which has since folded and was revived and I believe folded again, also experienced price bumps. There used to be a time when a lot of the brands mentioned were fairly affordable even on that auction site.
 
afishhunter said:
NOW. Prior to their bankruptcy (and of sister company Queen) in 2018 or 2019, Queen/S&M were made in Titusville. (In the early years (pre WW1) they were made in Michigan.)

Cooper bought all the rights to both Queen and S&M, along with some (all) of the tooling.
Cooper later sold the Queen/Queen City brands to SMKW in TN.
They were made offshore for a few years. I believe some are made in the USA again, but I don't know who makes them for SMKW.
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I thought S&M began in Gowanda, NY, and was enticed to come to Titusville in the very early 1900s.
 
Plantman said:
I thought S&M began in Gowanda, NY, and was enticed to come to Titusville in the very early 1900s.
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S&M started in NYC in 1895 as the New York Cutlery Co. Some time around the end of 1896 the business moved to Gowanda NY. Schatt and Morgan moved into the Platts factory in 1897, then moved to Titusville in 1902. in 1922, five supervisors were discovered to be selling knives out the back door on the side and were fired. These five guys founded Queen City Cutlery, and in 1933 bought the S&M factory and all assets at a bankruptcy auction.
I don't know how Michigan plays a part in this......other than Dave Shirley had Marbles and Northwoods knives (both were in Gladstone, Michigan) made by Queen 25 years ago or so.
 
Plantman said:
I thought S&M began in Gowanda, NY, and was enticed to come to Titusville in the very early 1900s.
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Arathol said:
S&M started in NYC in 1895 as the New York Cutlery Co. Some time around the end of 1896 the business moved to Gowanda NY. Schatt and Morgan moved into the Platts factory in 1897, then moved to Titusville in 1902. in 1922, five supervisors were discovered to be selling knives out the back door on the side and were fired. These five guys founded Queen City Cutlery, and in 1933 bought the S&M factory and all assets at a bankruptcy auction.
I don't know how Michigan plays a part in this......other than Dave Shirley had Marbles and Northwoods knives (both were in Gladstone, Michigan) made by Queen 25 years ago or so.
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I read in the Cooper Thread that Mr. Cooper was "bringing Queen/S&M back to Michigan where it all began" after buying the names, intilectuals, and at least some of the macheinery at the bankruptcy auction.
(Tho he later sold Queen to SMKW.)
 
Thanks for the information! I apparently need to reread Dave Anthony’s book!! Edit: I meant the David Krauss “American Pocketknives” book.
 
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Let’s not forget “Titusville Cutlery Co.” which is a relatively newer brand, one of the “Daniels family knife brands.” Ken Daniels was a onetime partner at GEC before he bought Queen, which went under not long after. This explains the Titusville connection but I have no idea where the knives are made or by whom. Tuna Valley is another one owned by the Daniels family and at one point made by Queen.
 
A good thing to keep in mind, is that there isn't a school where you learn the skills to be a knifemaker of traditional patterns. Most of the guys had hands-on learning in the factory, going over the 200+ different processes needed to make a knife. This knowledge is passed down in the factory from employee to employee over 100+ years. So a small town that has a knife factory, tends to have a tendency to pop up other knife related companies as guys try to expand and do their own thing. Western NY and western PA have a long history of pocket knives.

GaiusJulius said:
Let’s not forget “Titusville Cutlery Co.” which is a relatively newer brand, one of the “Daniels family knife brands.” Ken Daniels was a onetime partner at GEC before he bought Queen, which went under not long after. This explains the Titusville connection but I have no idea where the knives are made or by whom. Tuna Valley is another one owned by the Daniels family and at one point made by Queen.
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As to the Titusville and Tuna Valley brands, they are made in Titusville in a 1 man shop, the former master cutler of Queen and Ontario Knives.
 
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