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What you find cleaning out your mom's old jewelry box- (photos included)

I found these 4 knives a couple of years ago while sorting through ages of accumulation in preparation for an auction prior to moving my folks to an assisted care facility.My mom had no recollection of when or where she got them, but bless her heart, she'll be 90 in December, so that was not a surprise.I realise that all 4 knives and a couple of dollars might buy me a Starbucks, but they mean the world to me. If anyone has any additional information on these, I would greatly appreciate it.

Stamped-Argyle Cutlery Germany- mother of pearl pen-circa 1910-1930 ??

stamped -Frontier- obverse side- Imperial USA slim serpentine-circa 1975-85 ??

stamped- Kent NY City- circa 1931-55 ??

stamped - Imperial Prov. R.I. USA -circa ??-I have no idea what this is, guessing maybe a sewing knife for cutting thread. The blade is too thin to cut much else. Also has a strange opening. The red frame first opens to the side,then the pearlised portion flips back to reveal the blade-Once again, any imformation or comments will be greatly appreciated.

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Permalink Reply by Steve Hanner on October 26, 2013 at 20:22

wow those are great John will be fun to dig into those a bit!

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Permalink Reply by Steve Hanner on October 26, 2013 at 20:56

I can tell you on this first one: Argyle Cutlery Germany- mother of pearl pen-circa 1910-1930 It was sold through Brown Brothers which was later called FW Woolworth!

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by John McCain on October 26, 2013 at 21:47

Steve Hanner said:

I can tell you on this first one: Argyle Cutlery Germany- mother of pearl pen-circa 1910-1930 It was sold through Brown Brothers which was later called FW Woolworth!

Thanks so much,Steve- I know that money wise, they aren't worth much. But family history wise, they are worth a fortune. Any additional info you or anyone else can find, once again, will be highly appreciated by me and by my 2 brothers ,the other knife addict,and the other one who is rapidly becoming one !!

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Permalink Reply by Steve Hanner on October 26, 2013 at 21:58

OK my friend, I will keep looking and I am sure a few others will help too.

John McCain said:

Steve Hanner said:

I can tell you on this first one: Argyle Cutlery Germany- mother of pearl pen-circa 1910-1930 It was sold through Brown Brothers which was later called FW Woolworth!

Thanks so much,Steve- I know that money wise, they aren't worth much. But family history wise, they are worth a fortune. Any additional info you or anyone else can find, once again, will be highly appreciated by me and by my 2 brothers ,the other knife addict,and the other one who is rapidly becoming one !!

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FeaturedPermalink Reply by Craig Henry on October 27, 2013 at 1:09

Cool finds!

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Permalink Reply by Chuck Parham on October 27, 2013 at 3:31

Awesome assembly from your mother's past. That in its own right does make them priceless pieces. My own father's old Case Barlow knife is beat up from decades of use. The blades worn down from years of sharpening. And no longer shiny or crisp edges. But that one knife has far more memories and worth than any other in my collection. They would make a nice display in a shadow box along with some other sewing notions from her collection of sewing items and maybe an old pic of your mother herself. Great find and thanks for sharing it with us!

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Permalink Reply by Peter Howard on October 27, 2013 at 8:44

way to go mom, I bet they occupy a very special place int he collection for sure

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KnifeMakerPermalink Reply by Steve Koontz on November 2, 2013 at 13:57

Hey John, I'll try and add a little here, the Kent knife was made by Camillus in the 50's or 60's, the Frontier knife is an Imperial Schrade manufactured item made in the 70's, and the sewing knife as you call it was made to go on your keyring, it is a type of butterfly knife and it was made by Imperial of Providence R.I.,

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by John McCain on November 2, 2013 at 16:40

Thank you once again Steve for the information and expertise.The keyring knife had really thrown me for a loss.I had not seen a butterfly style knife with the side to side frame opening before. .Any ideas as to the approximate vintage of the keyring knife ?? Thanks again for your help.