Traditional Scottish Dirks in Early America

A dirk is a long-bladed thrusting dagger. Its name derives from the Highland Dirk (Scots Gaelic "Dearg"). It was the traditional sidearm of the Highland Clansman and later used by the officers, pipers, and drummers of Scottish Highland regiments around 1725 to 1800. Many Scottish dirks carry a smaller knife and fork which fit into compartments on the front of the sheath, and a smaller knife known as a "sgian dubh" is also worn tucked into the top of the hose when wearing a kilt. By the end of the American Revolution, the term dirk began to describe a short naval side arm for both daggers or knife blades.

Scots came to America in large numbers just after 1700 and settled mostly in the southern colonies. Their numbers increased after the Jacobite defeats of 1715 and 1745. They brought the dirk which was a personal weapon carried in civilian life. Many of these Scottish colonists, particularly those who remained loyal to the crown, carried them into war as well as Scottish units in the British Army.

TahChee & His Knife

Tahchee & His Knife

The first thing you notice when viewing this likeness of Tahchee is not the knife but his eyes. In 1833 A P Chouteau wrote “Dutch (Tahchee) is looked upon as the most sagacious and daring war Captain in the Cherokee Nation west of the Mississippi…Dutch may be known, by a slight description among a thousand warriors, by his remarkable black, keen, restless eyes.”
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Making a Parfleche Knife Sheath

Bowie Knife Origins: A Brief History: Many Claim "Creator of Sandbar Bowie" Status

In 1838, Rezin P. Bowie, brother of James Bowie of Alamo fame, claimed that he made the first Bowie knife while the Bowies lived in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana. He designed it as a hunting knife and gave it to James for protection after his brother had been shot in the famous Sandbar Fight, which began in the Mississippi River across from the rough-and-tumble town of Natchez, Mississippi, in 1827.
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Making a Parfleche Knife Sheath

Making a Parfleche Knife Sheath

Native Americans made knife sheaths and storage containers from specially prepared rawhide referred to by the Europeans as “parfleche” (PAR-flesh). By using this kit, you will learn Indian techniques, including how to paint parfleche by using native tools and materials.
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