The 12th president was and is a hot knife commodity.

Ever in tune with what’s popular at the moment, knifemakers have never been afraid to cash in on a hot trend. William R. Williamson documented one of the more peculiar vogues of the middle 19th century when Zachary Taylor and bowie knives were all the rage.

Fresh off his triumphs in the Mexican-American War, Taylor was the 1850’s version of a rock star—Americans just couldn’t get enough of him. And while not known to carry a bowie nor affiliate with the hero of the Alamo—Jim Bowie—the general and president’s likeness began to pop up on the most American of knives.

Funny thing is, as William’s points out in his article “Old Zach and the Bowie Knife,” from the March-April issue of The American Blade®, it wasn’t the Yanks cashing in. Instead, England Sheffield’s makers had the pulse of the USA and stamped Taylor’s visages on blades and bolsters.

Unfortunately, Old Rough and Ready’s short-lived presidency didn’t inspire the same outpouring of effigies. But modern collectors did and do find these unusual and patriotic blades desirable, as Williamson points out in his article.

More Knife History:

• Walter “Blackie” Collins: Applying The Edge To BLADE Magazine
• American Knives: Legendary Designs From The Land Of The Free
• Antique Switchblades: World War II And Beyond