Colonial Knife Company got its start in 1919 when it's founder, Antonio Paolantonio returned from WWI after serving with the United States Calvary as a Black Smith. Antonio began making knives at 9 Calendar Street in Providence, Rhode Island. Antonio called his new company the "A. Paolantonio Cutlery Company." Antonio's first customers were the jewelry industry. Antonio made knife skeletons and sold the skeletons to the jewelry industry where they would place exotic handles on the knives and re-sell the finished knives to high end men's clothing stores. Over the years the business grew and in 1926 Antonio changed the company name to Colonial Knife Company, Inc.
World War II broke out and Antonio was asked to serve on the War Production Board in Washington, D.C. where he oversaw the allocation of steel to the cutlery industry and research that lead to the only combat knife to use polymers (plastics) for knife handles that offered Navy corpsman and medics the ability to boil the knife to make it sterile.
Over the next 40 years Colonial Knife grew adding over 150 product lines and during the 1960's enjoyed the reputation as the world's largest knife manufacturer.
During the 1970's and into the 1980's Colonial produced collector knives for Smith & Wesson, Colt, Winchester, and the "John Russell Barlow" knives for Russell Harrington Company (Dexter Russell) the "Colonel Coon" knife line along with producing knives for a number of knife manufacturers under private label.
Colonial's current brands include such names as Ranger,Colonial-Prov.USA, Old Cutler, Anvil Brand, Coyote, Master Series, Swiss Master, BackCountry, Solder Tec, Hurricane, GSA government Knives, auto knives, Hand Crafted Series and Barlow. |
