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Foreword

Great Eastern Cutlery manufactured the Waynorth Cutlery #93 Lambfoot in 2019, and since then I have planned to write an article on the history of this unusual slipjoint pattern. In this article I will describe the pattern, its possible history, and why the Waynorth version is special. I hope it’s an enjoyable and interesting read, but I want to stress and make clear that the content of this article should NOT be taken as absolute historical fact but rather as educated conjectures. Most of the points in this article are based on posts in the Guardians of the Lambfoot thread on BladeForums, and you can find links to specific posts I’ve referenced at the following links: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. If you would just like to see the knife in question check out the video below.

What is a Lambfoot knife?

The Lambfoot is a knife that not many in America are familiar with, and that can seem a little vague in its definition; so what is it? The Lambfoot is defined primarily by its blade shape. It has a straight edge, with no belly (before sharpening / wear). The spine is straight, but angled slightly downward from the handle toward the tip. The main spine section comes to a rounded angle that connects a smaller, also straight, spine section to the tip. Aside from the blade, a Lambfoot knife usually (but not always) has a swayback type handle. That means that the butt of the knife sets out of center with the pivot to the spring side. The Lambfoot also seems to most often be a single bladed knife, though there are multi bladed examples that can be found. So considering all that, the Lambfoot is similar to a harvester, pruning, or cotton sampler knife with a more slender blade and (typically) more slender handle.

What are the origins of the Lambfoot knife’s name and design?

The origin of the Lambfoot’s name and design is murky and difficult to nail down definitively, but there are a few things that can be guessed at with some research. First, the pattern seems to have emerged in the mid to lade 19th century. There are no obvious examples of the Lambfoot in Smith’s Key 1816, an industry pattern catalogue. That said, there are some knives that seem to be Lambfoot predecessors that blur the line between Sheepfoot, Wharncliffe, and Lambfoot. Another indicator that the pattern didn’t develop until the late 19th century is that it didn’t show up in America after many Sheffield cutlers immigrated to New England in the 1840s-1860s, which I’ll discuss further later in the article. Manufacturer catalogues from the late 19th century begin to show Lambfoot knives, and their representation in catalogues becomes widespread in the early 20th century. Around this time the cutlery industry in the UK saw many trademark infringement lawsuits and both the design, as a possible modification of the sheepfoot shape, and the name could have been an attempt at marketing and product differentiation. Some evidence for this is the commonness of Lambfoot knives having a stamp or etch on the blade announcing it as a “Real Lambfoot Knife”. Specifically, it might have been called the Lambfoot because it can be seen as a more slender Sheepfoot, therefore playing on the fact that a lamb is a juvenile sheep. While these are some of the possible reasons for the development of the Lambfoot name and design, it seems the specific origin of the name and pattern have been lost to history.

Why is the Waynorth Lambfoot from GEC so special?

So, why did Great Eastern Cutlery’s version of the Lambfoot knife make such a splash? It was one of the most anticipated and sought after knives in GEC’s history, which is full of highly anticipated and sought after knives. It was produced alongside a normal run of a new pattern for GEC, the #93 Ramfoot, as a Special Factory Order for Waynorth Cutlery. Waynorth Cutlery is the new brand created by Charlie Campagna. Mr. Campagna is the mastermind behind the TC Barlows, Harness Jacks, and other great SFOs that have helped to skyrocket Great Eastern Cutlery’s popularity. Considering its popularity in the UK, it might come as a surprise that the Waynorth Lambfoot seems to be the very first factory produced Lambfoot knife made in America. Although I’ve heard there might have been some knives made in America that had blades that toed the line toward being a legitimate Lambfoot, I can’t find an image showing an actual definitive example. So after around 100 years of existence the Lambfoot pattern finally made its debut, American style.

Why didn’t the Lambfoot show up in America till now?

So, why did it take so long for an American company to make their version of the Lambfoot knife? As I mentioned earlier, one reason may be that many of the cutlers who founded the early American knife manufacturers immigrated to the United States in the mid 19th century, and the Lambfoot wouldn’t be “invented” or come to prominence till the late 19th and early 20th century. Meanwhile, the many blade shapes that became popular in America (Spear Point, Clip Point, Pen, Pruner, and Sheepfoot) had already been well established by the time the American cutlery industry was founded. Another barrier that may have kept the Lambfoot from being introduced into the U.S. market was the “McKinley” Tariff Act of 1890. This legislation brought the tax on imports to the U.S. to ~38-49% on average, and would have pushed Sheffield / U.K. manufacturers to turn away from the American market. This turn away from the U.S. market is also likely why the Lambfoot knife can be found in Australia (especially considering its high numbers of sheep and agricultural workers), and even somewhat in Canada, both once U.K. colonies. Finally, curved edges are more useful in skinning, hunting, and general outdoors / wilderness tasks. These types of tasks would have been much more common in America at the turn of the 20th century, when much of the country was still wilderness (whereas much of the U.K. was urbanized or farmland). Also, hunting was (and remains) much more common in the U.S. because there is more large game in the Americas. Additionally, hunting is illegal in many places in the U.K. because of an interesting history of the game being owned by the royal family and aristocrats. So, historical trends of industry, legislation, recreation, and immigration all seem to have likely played a part in the lack of Lambfoot knives made in America.

Conclusion

The Waynorth Lambfoot has become one of my favorite knives. In fact, it was one of my most carried knives of 2020 and has become a great user. It has also inspired me to look into U.K. made Lambfoot knives and, although they seem somewhat difficult to get from U.S. sellers, I hope to add one to my collection in 2021. I have also enjoyed researching the pattern’s history, as it’s always a pleasure to see how closely the story of knives weaves into the overall current of history. I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at the Lambfoot knife.

Afterword

This article has been a long time coming. I have had several people request an article and / or video on the pattern, and I hope I’ve done the requests justice. Much of the information behind the content of this article was found in the Guardians of the Lambfoot thread on BladeForums, as well as a little on All About Pocket Knives. I greatly appreciate all the knowledge that can be found on those sites and the help I’ve received from members over the years. That said, the “Guardians” thread has over 46,000 replies and counting. It is extremely difficult to keep up with if you don’t spend significant time on the forums. There is an index post, but it also contains dozens if not hundreds of links with only headings and no descriptions. So for the vast majority of knife enthusiasts who don’t visit the forums, let alone spend significant time following and searching through threads, there are real barriers to accessing the knowledge surrounding this Lambfoot pattern. Whether that information is historical fact or educated conjecture, either way I think people are interested and have a desire to consume the info. One of the chief reasons I wanted to publish an article on this subject is because there really are few sources of information online about the Lambfoot, as well as other traditional knife subjects, other than threads on the forums. One of the chief reasons I publish articles and videos overall is to share knowledge with the people who don’t visit those sites. I personally believe that sharing knowledge, or even “conjecture” as this article contains, outside those sometimes insular groups can only be beneficial to the overall knowledge of, enthusiasm for, and interest in traditional knives. I hope this article is enlightening and helpful to you, and I appreciate you reading!

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