Civil War Invalid Amputee Eating Utensil, as in museums and books

This is another unique and rare item offered; it is a Civil War soldier’s Invalid Eating Utensil that measures approximately 8 ¼” x 1”.  It is nicely marked on the blade with the famous cutlery maker “J. Russell & Co. / Green River Works".

John Russell began manufacturing tools and cutlery in 1834 and established a new factory on the Green River in Massachusetts in 1836. His knives rivaled the quality of those manufactured in Sheffield, England, and as settlers moved West in the 1840s and the many amputees from the Civil War, Russell's Green River knives were very desired.

The design was such that the blade would cut the food by a rocking motion of the blade and then the end would act like a fork to be used for eating. This was a necessity for anyone with only one arm.

Although the exact number is not known, approximately 60,000 surgeries, about three quarters of all the operations performed during the war, were amputations. About 80 percent of the wounds soldiers received were in the soldier’s arms, hands, legs and feet. With the shortage of surgeons, it is said "The limbs of soldiers are in as much danger from the ardor of young surgeons as from the missiles of the enemy."

In my  book “The Civil War Soldier – His Personal Items”, I have a very similar example included (see pictures). In the book I write “Although artificial limbs were available, many veterans felt that instead of hiding their injury with prosthesis, they would make their sacrifice visible. The display of an ‘honorable scar’, especially during and immediately after the war, helped amputees to assert their contribution to the cause”.

This unique piece has seen use but remains in very nice condition and the handle is tight. No doubt a veteran would have used this for the rest of his life. An identical example is in the Civil War Medical Museum in Frederick, Maryland (see pictures). It would make a great addition to a soldier or medical display.