Press Update March 4th,2005
Two of America 's Oldest Unite
by Brad Lockwood

1825, a year that forever changed two sovereign nations and the cutlery industry forever. The Erie Canal was opened, offering the relatively brisk passage of 4 miles per hour from Albany, cutting the arduous 300-mile journey to Buffalo to a mere five days. The western wilderness was at last exposed: the Great Lakes and beyond for those who could afford a steamship’s fare; the Chautauqua Road for the rest, a muddy trail winding southwest of Lake Erie. Never again would natural obstacles like the Appalachian and Allegany Mountains confine a new nation, the ancient lands of America’s first nation were now open for exploration, exploitation.


The Original Americans
The Seneca Nation of the Iroquois Confederacy was among the first to suffer the onslaught of western expansion and settlement. Though it may seem odd to refer to a “nation” and “confederacy” while speaking of Native Americans, it is the reality. The Seneca – Onondowahgah or “People of the Great Hill” – were members of a representative government established to bring peace to the six tribes populating all of upstate and western New York, as well as northwestern Pennsylvania. In fact, the democratic principles practiced by the Iroquois Confederacy inspired the Founding Fathers of these United States of America while writing the Constitution; even the symbol – the eagle – was borrowed from the Iroquois.

A proud people, the Seneca are a matriarchal society that allows women to take part in all levels of government, encourages adoption, and seldom went to war with fellow members of the Iroquois Confederacy, instead settling disputes through councils and diplomacy. For millennia, the Seneca have thrived on the belief that coexistence between their people and nature’s bounty is both a birthright and duty. Compared to the settlers streaming through their homelands, hacking down forests, marring the landscape, slaughtering wildlife and the Seneca, themselves, it is ironic that Native Americans were referred to as “savages.”


The Arrival of the Cases
1825 was a time of change for all Americans, Native and Non. Among the thousands of settlers heading west that year was one family in particular that would leave their mark on both the country and cutlery industry. Their fourth homestead in as many years, William and Sophia Case arrived in Cattaraugus County with five young sons, a girl on the way, and squatted on 100 acres outside of Little Valley – only a few miles from the Seneca’s aboriginal lands, the “Allegany Reservation” in Salamanca, New York. Winter already setting in, the Cases had to hastily build a shelter and gather enough food for survival; there was no time to waste, with William working as a blacksmith and logger, and Sophia maintaining the homestead, rearing so many children. Aged eight and younger, the Case boys were certainly a handful, assisting their parents as much as they could, attending the local single-room schoolhouse, but favoring adventures in the woods and, in-turn, annoying their new neighbors.

That first winter was especially harsh; the Case family cramped inside a crude log cabin with few supplies, deep snow blanketing the region, struggling to hunt and forage for food. Thinking they were helping, the Case boys would often sneak onto Seneca lands and steal their meat, usually deer or rabbit hanging from a tree, fleeing back to the supposed safety of the homestead. As expected, the Seneca did not view such behavior as juvenile playfulness but a threat to their own survival and sovereignty. Pursuing the thieving boys, the Seneca would scour the hills and valleys for hours, tracking them, forcing the Cases to backtrack, try to wash away their prints and scent, at times hiding in a hollow tree to avoid capture or worse.

By spring thaw, the boys’ antics had become so common that it evolved into a bit of a game, with Seneca stealing the Case family’s game, crops and clothes, then setting them out in the open for the boys to return the favor. Egregious at first, such relations slowly bore fruit, with the family trading timber and tools, crops, stories and beliefs with the Seneca. This was often the case with pioneers along the harsh western edges of young America: settlers and Natives had no choice but to interact and trade; cooperation was essential for survival.

It was then and there where it all began. 180 years ago, the Seneca and Cases coexisted to survive a brutal winter in western New York. Laying the foundation for the family’s later dominance of an important domestic industry, the region would never be the same; lands once known for the “People of the Great Hill” would soon become synonymous with cutlery. “The Magic Circle” was borne: a 100-mile area with over 70 concerns in operation over the past 140 years, all led by the family that wouldn’t have survived survive their first western New York winter without the Seneca.

Job, William and Sophia’s third-eldest son, would become the patriarch of the Case cutlery dynasty, with seven of his nine children directly involved in starting cutlery companies, practicing and perfecting the ancient art. 34 cutlery companies would eventually spring from the mighty Case clan, indelibly connecting the family to the industry. Cattaraugus Cutlery, Case Brothers, W.R. Case & Sons, Crandall Cutlery, C. Platts’ Sons, Kinfolks, Ka-Bar, Burrell Cutlery... All related by blood and committed to quality, the Cases were also fiercely competitive – as only kin can be – leaving a mark on the region and industry that continues to today.


First Nations Knives, LLC
Considering the rich history of “The Magic Circle” and the 180 years of cooperation between the Seneca and Cases, it is especially apt that members of both clans have now joined forces to form a new company.

First Nations Knives, LLC is a joint-venture between Burrell Cutlery, led by John Burrell, the last Case descendant still in the cutlery business, and Ross John, an entrepreneur and enrolled member of the Seneca Nation of Indians. Both based in western New York – Burrell Cutlery in Ellicottville and Ross John of the Allegany and Cattaraugus Reservations of the Seneca Nation of Indians – the two are marrying their skills and resources to make and market knives in America, using only American masters and domestic raw materials.

“Long ago, when my people and Non-Natives traded with each other, knives were what we wanted.” Ross John explains, “It seemed only right that we finally start making knives ourselves.”

In doing so, he couldn’t be working with a better person... John Burrell’s decades of industry expertise brings considerable depth to the new company. He is a fourth generation Case, and the third to run Burrell Cutlery, started in 1940 when his grandparents, Harold and Addie Case Burrell, broke-off from Kinfolks in Little Valley to make straight razors in nearby Ellicottville. Over the years, the company has adapted to industry change to become a premier designer, manufacturer and finisher of fine household cutlery, hunting and fishing knives for leading cutlery companies and custom knife makers alike. Burrell Cutlery’s products are regularly showcased in this magazine and other publications, even though they usually bear another company’s name. It is almost a given that anyone reading this article, all Americans, has used one of Burrell Cutlery’s products without even knowing it.

“Cutlery is in my blood, going back to my great-grandfather making and selling hand-forged knives at Case Brothers over a century ago.” offers John Burrell, referring to Jean Case, President of Case Brothers and one of Job’s sons. “Being a Case descendant, and the only one still in the business, is obviously very important... But I let my finished products speak for themselves. If my customers’ customers are satisfied, so am I.”

This is an industry of families after all, and John and his wife Sheila run Burrell Cutlery side-by-side, like their forebears. The unique position that they hold is one they cherish, and now wish to share with others. Their son John Jr. is the winning college football coach at Western Connecticut University, making it highly likely that John Burrell may in fact be the last Case in the cutlery business. Teaching others the trade is critical for him, and this venture allows his four generations of knife-making to continue. Legacy is the operative word here, not just for John Burrell, but his partner in First Nations Knives as well.

“I don’t want my legacy to be cigarettes and gasoline...” insists Ross John, “After over 500 years of non-natives on this continent, mine is the first generation of Native American entrepreneurs. We need time to build an economy, and that requires working with Non-Natives. Coexistence is critical.”

And Ross John has done just that. He is already one of the most successful Native Americans in the region, starting with a business model in 1983 of working closely with family and the local community. Through partnering he is now the President of Ross John Enterprises: 100% owner and manager of sixteen interrelated businesses. As diverse and as they are profitable, Ross John has parlayed his tax-free sales of cigarettes and gasoline into global conglomerate that defies labels. Including a bank, real estate development and leasing agency, pharmaceutical fulfillment service, multiple tobacco and gasoline outlets, a global warehousing and shipping concern, fast food and hotel franchises, even a space-aged composites factory... Through vision and determination, Ross John has built a business empire the envy of any entrepreneur, Native American or not.

“Partnerships are vital to the survival and success of our collective future.” He explains, adding that the decision to join with Burrell Cutlery was an easy one. “With the history of the Case family, both in the industry and locally, and Burrell Cutlery being the last, this is the model that I wanted to follow in making knives for my people and all Americans.”


A New Company Built on Heritage
Interestingly, in addition to that first winter in western New York, this is not the first time the Cases and the Seneca have worked together to make and sell cutlery. Given their shared history, it was no coincidence that the very symbol of the family’s first cutlery was a Native American. After W.R., Jean, Andrew Jackson and John D. Case joined their brother-in-law’s cutlery jobber company in 1885, J.B.F. Champlin & Son was renamed and an Indian Sachem chosen as its official trademark. In additional to this proud symbol, Cattaraugus Cutlery continued to prominently feature pictures of actual Seneca in traditional and ceremonial garb for its corporate literature and advertisements.

The formation of First Nations Knives seems almost predestined, indeed; the natural evolution of two talented businessmen – John Burrell and Ross John – working together for greater cooperation between two sovereign nations: The United States of America and the Seneca Nation of Indians. The company will initially release a limited number of commemorative knives to honor important Native American figures in history, as well as multiple lines of high-end hunting knives. Inspired by the Seneca and other Native Americans, these knives will be designed by custom knife maker Tom Mohr, who has worked at Burrell Cutlery for over a decade, currently serving as Plant Manager, and whose father, Larry Mohr, served on the Seneca Tribal Council.

Making knives is only the beginning for First Nations Knives, though. Plans are already underway to regularly host knife-making classes at Burrell Cutlery in Ellicottville, opening the facility to the Seneca, locals and tourists, teaching every stage in the process and allowing them to make a knife of their own. The actual art will always remain forefront, as the knives’ exquisite minerals, leather, bead- and inlay-work will incorporate Seneca culture, themes and stories, while the literature will offer comprehensive insight into each historical figure represented and the significance of every detail.


Good News for the Industry as a Whole
The announcement of the formation of First Nations Knives is welcome news for the domestic industry. Given the trend of outsourcing manufacturing and finishing work to foreign countries with cheaper labor like China – even the outright relocation of important American cutlery brands and entire operations to foreign shores – the aims of First Nations Knives are truly significant. All of its knives will be made in America, using only American masters and materials.

The breadth of the venture extends beyond western New York and the Seneca, too, as plans are also underway to provide hands-on educational classes on the ancient ways of knife-making. From hand-forging to custom knife-making, First Nations Knives wishes to attract the most talented masters from around world to come back to “The Magic Circle” and share what they know.

Coexistence is critical, remember, and teaching others how to make our oldest tool will allow the craft to continue for generations. Like the Cases, America’s largest and oldest family of knife-makers, and the Seneca, the original Americans, we must work together before we lose our ancestral art forever.


*About the Author*
Brad Lockwood grew-up in Little Valley, New York – “The Village of Knives” – and is a Case descendant, the great-great grandson of Andrew Jackson Case. The author of four books, Mr. Lockwood's forthcoming non-fiction work “Tested XX – The Case Cutlery Dynasty” is the definitive history of America's oldest and largest family of knife-makers – His own.

For more information on the book and pre-sales, please visit www.collectorbooks.com