Bowie Knife History
In the village of Marksville, central-east Louisiana, a significant document in Bowie knife history was signed. It was on April 10, 1827 to be exact. Rezin P. Bowie and his wife Margaret rode into Marksville. Accompanying Mr. and Mrs. Bowie were Caiaphas K. Ham and Jesse Clifft.
The Bowies had business to conduct with Herzehian Dunham, "the Notary Public in and for the parish of Avoyelles." They wanted to register the design for a new knife. The knife was made from an old file in the blacksmith shop of Rezin's Bayou Boeuf plantation. The maker was a hired white man named Jesse Clifft, who made it under Rezin Bowie's direction.
The document that was signed was to state that Rezin Bowie was the designer of the Bowie knife while Jesse Clifft was the maker of the knife. It was also a statement of copyright. It read in part:
In consideration of four thousand dollars... the said R. P. Bowie and the said M. Bowie does by these presents grant, bargain, sell and convey into the said Wm. Hargrove nine certain slaves to wit,
Bill aged 25,
Stephen aged 30,
Sally aged 25 and child unknown age,
Harry aged 40,
Tom aged 45,
Willoby aged 25,
Bartlett aged 27,
and Lewis aged 18, all slaves for life.
Up to know it was thought that James Bowie designed the knife but it is now known that Rezin Bowie designed it. With this knife James Bowie killed Major Norris Wright of Alexandria, Louisiana in the famous sandbar fight near Natchez, Mississippi on September 19, 1827. This event is what made the knife so famous today. Since then the Bowie knife has changed forms into hundreds of variations but still there remains the same basic features.