Bowie Knives History

8 min readAug 14, 2023

Bowie Knife (pronounced BOO-ee)

History

Was there a real Jim Bowie?

This commonly mispronounced knife got its name from a famous knife fighter named James Bowie who was a 19th-century American pioneer, slave smuggler, trader, and soldier who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution and fought at the Alamo.

What are James Bowie’s famous quotes?

Many thought he was accredited for saying “Remember the Alamo” but this was shared by Davie Crockett, William Barret Travis along with Jim Bowie. This phrase has been reported in history to be yelled at the victory at San Jacinto.

Other famous quotes from Jim Bowie are:

James Bowie: I don’t deserve mercy. I do deserve a drink. You got anything stronger than water?
William Travis: I don’t drink, Jim, you know that. I gamble, go to whores, run off on wives… but drinking, I draw the line.
James Bowie: You know, if you live five more years, you might just be a great man.
William Travis: I think I will probably have to settle for what I am now.

Who Made the Original Bowie Knife?

The first original bowie knife was created in 1838 by Jim Bowie’s brother Rezin P. Bowie in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, and was blacksmithed by Jesse Clifft out of an old file. He designed it to be a hunting knife which makes a great hunting knife still today but gave it to his brother, Jim, for protection after he got shot in a fight.

How did the Bowie Knife Become Famous?

The bowie knife became famous at the Vidalia Sandbar Fight in 1827 from a duel between Bowie and several men near Natchez, Mississippi on a sandbar in the Mississippi River. What made this knife fight famous was the fact that Bowie was shot, stabbed, and beaten half to death but ended up winning the fight with the use of a bowie knife. But this was not the knife that his brother has given him, instead, it was a knife made for him by Snowden, a blacksmith.

After this famous sandbar fight, Jim Bowie and his knife became famous and soon several people made requests of the brothers to make them knives of the same design that Rapid River Knifeworks still does to this day following the hand-made tradition. The Bowie brothers created many more knives with the help of other knife makers creating ornate custom blades very much like how Rapid River Knifeworks create custom ornate blades, handles, and engravings.

This was not the only time that Jim Bowie used a bowie knife to defend himself. In 1831, he was involved in a knife fight in Texas against three armed men with guns who were hired to kill him by someone that Jim Bowie left to live in a fight in 1829. According to historians he had used a bowie knife to kill all three men. One of them was nearly decapitated, the second one was disemboweled, and the skull of the third man was split open.

What happened to the Original Bowie Knife?

For many years it was not known what happened to the original bowie knife but the Historic Arkansas Museum received a knife from a Texan collector with the engraving “Bowie №1” and through testing the knife shows that it was from James Black. One of the knives that Jim Bowie had used.

Different Types of Bowie Knives

Since the original bowie knife, many improvements were made several times by the Bowie brothers. The knife created by the blacksmith Jessie Clift at the request of Jim’s brother Rezin resembled Spanish hunting knives of the day and resembled a butcher knife. It was 9.5 inches long, 0.25 inches thick, and 1.5 inches wide with a straight back.

What is a Bowie Knife Good For?

Later on, some bowie knives had a notch added to the bottom of the blade by the hilt as a way for catching the knife of your opponent if you were in a knife fight. This was known as the “Spanish Notch”. This notch was also useful as a tool for stripping sinew, repairing nets & ropes, and used as a guide to assist in sharpening the blade. Which makes the bowie knife a good hunting knife.

Is a Bowie Knife a Good Bushcraft Knife?

The bowie knife is a good hunting knife and it also makes a great bushcraft or survival knife. The design of the bowie knife makes it useful for skinning and butchering games in the wild. The Spanish Notch is useful for various survival tasks that are needed if you are lost in the woods. The curved top clip bevel of the blade is used to remove the skin from a carcass while the straight portion is used for cutting meat.

Are Bowie Knives Good for Self-Defense?

Jim Bowie has proved on a number of occasions that the bowie knife is good for self-defense but remember that the knife is only as good as the person wielding it.

Since the tip of the blade is lower than the spine along with how the handle is in line with the spine gives it better control during thrusting attacks.

Although the Spanish Notch was designed to help catch the opponent’s knife it has been deemed unsuccessful except by advanced knife fighters. The shape of the knife with the beveled point makes it appear to be a sharp knife whether it is or not. The metal guard at the end of the handle is useful for protecting the hand when performing moves like the “back cut” or “backslash”.

Why is a Bowie Knife Illegal?

For this reason, Bowie Knives are made illegal in several states due to their effectiveness in a knife fight and how dangerous it can be.

Where are Bowie Knives Illegal?

As of the date of this article, these laws apply.

Alabama — You can own and carry a bowie knife, but you cannot carry it concealed unless you are on your own property. Bowie knives are illegal to carry in your vehicle. Selling bowie knives to someone under 18 is illegal in Alabama. One year after the death of Jim Bowie at the Alamo in 1837 the Alabama legislature passed laws imposing a $100 transfer tax on ‘Bowie’ knives and stated that anyone carrying a bowie knife who killed a person in a fight would be charged with premeditated murder.
Arizona — It is legal to own bowie knives but it is illegal if you do not inform officers that you have a concealed bowie knife, are under the age of 21, or bring the concealed knife to a school.
California — It is legal to own a bowie knife but against the law to carry a concealed bowie knife which is a misdemeanor or felony and California has the strictest laws in the country.
Colorado — It is legal to own a bowie knife but you cannot conceal carry one if the knife is over 3.5 inches long.
Connecticut — It is legal to own a bowie knife but you cannot conceal carry one if the knife is over 4 inches long.
Delaware — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to conceal and carry it.
Idaho — It is legal to own a bowie knife but cannot carry a concealed bowie knife. If you are under 18 you need parental consent to own a bowie knife. You cannot possess a bowie knife if you are under 12 unless you are with a parent or guardian.
Florida — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to carry a concealed one.
Georgia — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to conceal carry one that is over 5 inches long without a permit.
Hawaii — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to conceal and carry a knife that is similar to dirks and daggers.
Indiana — It is legal to own, open carry, and conceal carry a bowie knife as long as you don’t take it to a school.
Iowa — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to conceal carry one if the blade is longer than 5 inches.
Louisiana — You can own a bowie knife but it is against the law to carry a concealed bowie knife.
Maryland — You can own a bowie knife but cannot carry a concealed bowie knife or open carry a bowie knife with the intent to harm or threaten someone.
Mississippi — It is legal to own a bowie knife as long as you don’t have a felon conviction. It is against the law to carry a concealed bowie knife or use it as a dueling weapon.
Nebraska — It is legal to own a bowie knife unless you have been convicted of a felony, are a fugitive, and/or are subject to a domestic violence protective order.
New Jersey — It is legal to own a bowie knife unless you have been convicted of a violent crime.
North Carolina — You cannot carry a concealed bowie knife but it is legal to own one.
Oklahoma — It is illegal to conceal or open carry a bowie knife but legal to own one.
Oregon — It is legal to own a bowie knife unless you have been convicted of a felony.
Rhode Island — It is legal to own a bowie knife but it is illegal to carry a concealed bowie knife.
South Carolina — It is legal to own a bowie knife but it is illegal to carry a concealed bowie knife.
Tennessee — Carrying a concealed bowie knife is a felony and if used in a fight even during self-defense can bring a 3 to 15-year sentence.
Texas — It is legal to carry a bowie knife unless its blade is over 5 ½ inches.
Utah — It is legal to own a bowie knife unless you have been convicted of a felony.
Vermont — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to open carry or conceal carry it on school or government properties.
Virginia — It is against the law to carry a concealed bowie knife but it is legal to own one.
Washington — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to open carry or conceal carry one into a courtroom.
Wyoming — It is legal to own a bowie knife but illegal to conceal carry one.

Famous People Using Bowie Knives

A Bowie Knife was used to Kill a Vampire?

The 1897 version of Dracula by Bram Stoker actually has Dracula killed by piercing his heart with Quincey Morris’s bowie knife and having his throat slit by Jonathan Harker’s kukri knife. Bowie knives are also in the works of Harriet Beecher Stove, Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, and Jules Verne.

What kind of knife did Crocodile Dundee have?

Crocodile Dundee had a 15-inch bowie knife with a handle being 5 inches and a blade being 10 inches long and was created by John Bowring.

Collecting

How Much is a Bowie Knife Worth?

Bowie knives are highly collectible. Antique bowie knives can sell anywhere between $5,000 to $200,000. Bowie knives that are custom hand-made and engraved like the ones from Rapid River Knifeworks are much more valuable and hold their value for much longer.

Our bowie knives along with other knives are always in high demand and sell out frequently, especially toward the end and beginning of the year so check back to see what we have in stock.