All About Pocket Knives

The shorter of the two belonged to my maternal grandfather. The initials stand for William Thorton Stokes. He was born in 1886. He had a stroke in about 1952 which effected his mind until he died in 1962.

The longer one belonged to my folks. If I had all the hogs those two knives have butchered, I'd have to open a meat packing plant.

There are no maker marks on either one of these knives. They're just old butcher knives that are part of a lot of memories for me.

Great old family knives, Jerry. It's nice to see them.

Nice old knives Jerry

Here's and old sharpener and butcher knife passed down through the family to me. My dad who is 65 has memories of his grandparents and parents using the knife to do everything from de-heading yard chickens and butchering meat to trimming limbs in the yard. The knife is a little over 15 inches and sharpens to a scary razor edge. I use the steel to touch up everything from the kitchen to the pocket. Neither have a makers mark remaining if they ever had one at all. They are rock solid and will still be around long after I am gone.

Nothing like Family history though a set of kitchen knives.

Wonderful thread! I grew up on Pa and Grandma's farm. Thanksgiving day was always hog killing day. I grew up eating out of the smokehouse (as a matter of fact I have the old smokehouse although it does need some attention).

Here's the knife that Pa used to cut the hog's throat and that grandma used to trim ham meat in the kitchen.

Also, here is the tool Pa made to squeeze out the cracklings when he made lard. He'd put the rendered cracklings in a clean feed sack and squeeze them with this. I propped it up on one of his old milk cans.

Nice X pattern on the knife.