A Smith You’d Probably Like To Know – Texas Bladesmith Jim White
By B. R. Hughes
If memory does not do me an injustice, I first saw a knife made by James White in 2017, when he volunteered to donate a hunter for a raffle which would benefit the American Bladesmith Society.
The drawing took place at that year’s Fall Piney Woods Hammer-In, which was held in Old Washington, Arkansas, then the home of the W.F. “Bill” Moran School of Bladesmithing. The school had opened its doors on May 1, 1988, making it the oldest school of bladesmithing in the world. Since then, the Moran School has moved to the campus of Texarkana College in Bowie County, Texas, in July, 2019.
Back in 2017, I was the director of the Piney Woods Seminar, held annually in the spring and fall, so I had ample opportunity to examine White’s knife at close range. It was a clean – very clean – four-inch bladed hunter with classic lines and flawless workmanship. To put it clearly, I was hooked! Ere long, I placed an order for a White hunter of my own.
This article first appeared in the December 2020 issue of KNIFE Magazine. Premium Online Members can read the whole thing by clicking the blue box below.