Are you ready to get covered in sawdust and create a knife just like those used in the 1850's? This project is perfect for children 10+ to do with their parents, or teens with parental supervision. This kit includes the wood, rivets, sandpaper, and instructions you will need to create a replica wooden knife.  The following are included in your box:
 
(1) 3/8" x 1-1/2" x 12" long Hardwood (Oak or Maple)
(2) 3/16" x 1-1/2" x 6" long Contrasting Wood (Mahogany or Walnut)
Brass Knife Rivets
Sandpaper (80 grit - 320 grit)
 
You will need access to the following tools (not included in the box):
 
Coping Saw
Wood Rasp and File
Drill and Bit
Hammer
 
 
Background information on the historical knife you will create:
 
John Russell, a successful young businessman in the early 1800’s knew that cutlery manufacturers in Sheffield, England set the standard for excellence in knife making. Russell thought he could give them a run for their money, so he began a water-powered manufacturing plant and founded his Green River Works on March 1st, 1834 on Green River in Greenfield, MA.  Green River knives became a favorite of emigrants, buffalo hunters, Native Americans, gold seekers, miners and settlers. They were the most widely traded of all knives with the Native American tribes.  They came from the factory packed in wooden kegs and were traded for furs and goods all over the Great Plains. The knives traveled by sea from New England to New Orleans and then up the Mississippi River. From St. Louis they were shipped by wagon train to New Mexico and then along the Santa Fe Trail to the West Coast.  In his "Life in the Far West" (Blackwood's Magazine, 1848), writer Frederick Ruxton was the first to note that the mountain men of his time carried "Green River” knives. The popularity of the knife on the frontier was such that American, English and German cutlery firms began stamping "Green River" on their own products! "Done up to Green River” came to mean “doing something to the fullest extent possible.”  This Green River Kniffe is the #4215 pattern, the Traditional 5" Hunting/Fishing model. It features a 5” flat ground drop point blade made of high carbon steel, 9” overall in length, and 4” handle with solid walnut wood handle, cross-hatched for improved grip. The full tang of the Green River, meaning the blade steel goes all the way back through the handle scales to the butt, makes it inherently stronger. This design is extremely versatile and perfect for most tasks for hunting and camping.