Revolutionary War soldier’s pocketknife, recovered at Whitehall, NY (SOLD)

This is another unique piece being offered, it is a soldier’s pocketknife frozen in the half open position. The handle measures approximately 3 ½” and the blade 3”. This knife was recovered from one of the sunken boats at Skenesborough, New York (present day Whitehall). There are examples of this pocketknife in just about all of the Revolutionary War museums.

In the summer of 1776, General Benedict Arnold supervised the rapid construction of a small fleet of gunboats, row galleys, and gundalows at Skenesborough, which was later renamed Whitehall, New York.

Because this fleet represented the first warships built by the rebellious American colonies to confront an enemy fleet, Whitehall is widely celebrated as the "Birthplace of the United States Navy".  These ships fought bravely against a superior British force at the Battle of Valcour Island on Lake Champlain on October 11, 1776.

While the battle resulted in a tactical defeat—with many of the American gunboats heavily damaged, captured, or purposefully burned and sunk to keep them out of enemy hands—the effort effectively delayed the British invasion from Canada by a full year. This extra time allowed the Continental Army to rebuild and ultimately win the pivotal Battle of Saratoga.

While retreating from Mount Independence, Col. Pierse Long’s force of mixed Continental troops and families joined forces with Capt. James Gray’s soldiers at Skenesborough. The British navy pursued and engaged the Americans at Skenesborough, while three regiments attempted and failed to cut off the route of escape for the Americans. The American forces fled south and burned their ships and supplies while retreating.

In capturing Skenesborough and other small settlements between Fort Ticonderoga and Albany, Gen. John Burgoyne intended to cut off all communication between the coast and inland New York. Burgoyne was also attempting to maintain control of the Lake Champlain region. Gen. Burgoyne’s victory at Skenesborough only added to his belief that his campaign would be a complete success.

As seen in the pictures, this knife has overall rust, but no chipping or flaking – it has been coated with a varnish for preservation. The soldier obviously had it half open when he dropped it on the boat. I show a picture of one of the sunken boats that was built in Whitehall (see pictures). It comes in the glass top display case pictured.

With the 250th anniversary of the nation's founding this year, interest in the Revolutionary War and its relics is significantly increasing. This renewed enthusiasm is driving the demand for virtually all Revolutionary War artifacts, further contributing to their scarcity and rising prices.