anyone have pics. of old bowie knives with oklahoma ties.i have been looking for one with no luck.
thanks

or any bowies of any kind.
thanks

http://www.civilwar.si.edu/weapons_bowie.html


Confederate bowie knife


This bowie knife was found on the battlefield of Perryville, Kentucky. It is brass mounted and has wooden grips and a blade 12 7/8 inches long. The bowie is usually classified as any large knife with a chipped point. This type of knife was popular from the 1840s through 1865. They were used by United States troops during the Mexican War and on the frontier during the disturbances in Kansas and Missouri in the 1850s. They were also popular with troopers during the Civil War, especially with Confederates, whose arms generally were inferior to the Yankees.

Division of the History of Technology, Armed Forces History
National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Behring Center
From the Gill Collection


http://www.civilwar.si.edu/weapons_images/l_bowie.jpg

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/books/texasclassics/traildriv...12198638-c-0243.html

HIS FATHER MADE FINE "BOWIE" KNIVES

By John James Haynes of 308 Arden Grove,
San Antonio, Texas
I was born in the Republic of Texas, August 6, 1843, where Gonzales is now located. My father, Charles Haynes, who arrived in Texas some ten years previous, risked his life in helping Texas to gain her independence from Mexico. I was raised in Llano County, then on the frontier. When I was quite small I was taught to ride, shoot, hunt and run wild cattle, and all the other things necessary to withstand the requirements of those strenuous times. At a very early age my father presented each of his three sons with a gun, and as he was a mechanic and smith by trade, he made for each of us a long "Bowie" knife, and gave instructions how to use it. The rule in those days was to use the "Bowie" knife and save powder and shot. I have been in many close quarters when that knife came in mighty handy, for in my time I have killed every kind of wild animal that roamed in this wild country. Besides the wild animals we had worse foes to contend with— the savage Indians, who often made raids upon the white settlements. But as this writing is for our experiences with cattle on and off the trail, I will confine myself to those experiences.

When I was eighteen years old I joined the Confederate Army and was sent out of the State. I served the entire four years of that desperate struggle, and came home with a crippled arm. When we were discharged we were given transportation home, as far as the train went, and it didn't go far into Texas in those days. We came by water to Galveston, and while our "high up" officers were having a "peace treaty" somewhere in town, we "high up privates of the rear ranks" decided we had been away from home long enough, and as we did not see anything of special interest or excitement to

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http://www.amazon.com/Bowie-Knife-Unsheathing-American-Legend/dp/193146412X

BOWIE KNIFE, THE UNSHEATHING AN AMERICAN LEGEND, BY FLAYDERMAN, NORM.
This book by the dean of American arms collectors has quickly become the all-time best selling book on on antique bowie knives. And no wonder -- it's chock-full of first rate photography and an immense amount of historical information.
I could go on and on about this book, but let's just keep it simple: if you have the slightest interest in antique Bowie knives, this book is a MUST HAVE - no matter whether your interest is historical, from a collectors standpoint, or if you just like the classic designs. The color photography is first-rate and the amount of information here is nothing less than overwhelming.

This is the first book on bowies to combine fantastic knives, beautiful photography, and a wealth of historical and collectors information all in one volume. The collecting world may never be the same!



*
Might find this in a library.

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/S?pp/ils:@FILREQ(@f...+@FIELD(COLLID+cwp))


TITLE: [Portrait of Pvt. Robert Patterson, Company D, 12th Tennessee Infantry, C.S.A.]


CALL NUMBER: Civil War Reference File[P&P]


REPRODUCTION NUMBER: LC-B8184-10038 (b&w film copy neg.)
No known restrictions on publication.


MEDIUM: 1 photographic print.


CREATED/PUBLISHED: [between 1860 and 1865, re-photographed 1961]


NOTES:

Forms part of Selected Civil War photographs, 1861-1865 (Library of Congress)

Copy photograph made by LC in 1961 of ambrotype in collection of Mrs. Arend Cude, Washington, D.C.

American Memory edition timeline. No. 1051


Forms part of Civil War glass negative collection (Library of Congress).


TOPICS:


Tennessee troops.


http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/cwp/4a40000/4a40900/4a40929r.jpg

thanks very much a lot of great info and pic.
keep them coming everyone.i wonder if there are any pic of old bowies fom oklahoma

There is a good example of a classic Bowie at the Oklahoma Historical Society. You might contact someone there and obtain a picture of it. They probably have more in storage.

The Bowie was a fighting weapon, large and bulky. It was pretty common to find them in the Civil War on both sides of the conflict. But, it was not a favored weapon of folk with steady jobs because they were relatively expensive and got in the way. It also hurt when one fell on them so cowboys preferred to carry a smaller dirk or butcher knife if they had a need for a sheath blade. Most carried a folding barlow. Indians loved the things but butcher knives were much easier to come by. Some gamblers and lawmen carried them, but again the bulk and weight went against the blade as a common devise in their arsnel.

great info,bowie knives came in real handy in the early 1800's because all guns only had one shot.i just love the things.