Ontario Knife Company – A Brief History and Knife Reviews

The Ontario Knife Company was founded in Naples, New York, in 1889, by three men – William B. Ensworth, Charles Albert Brace and William Maudsley. The company name comes from it’s location in Ontario County where Naples was situated. The first knives were manufactured using a water powered grindstone and sold locally through the neighboring countryside.

As the Ontario Knife Company grew, they naturally needed more space and more equipment to keep up with demand. They moved to an old sawmill at Cadiz located near the Village of Franklinville.

In the early 1900\’s the company was relocated from Cadiz to Franklinville as yet again, space and power had been limiting growth. This final move is currently where Ontario Knife is still based today.

In 1904 the owners of another local knife manufacturer, Empire State Cutlery Company, purchased the interests of the original Ontario Knife Company stockholders and in 1905 the two operations were combined in Franklinville under the Ontario Knife Company name. Once again the company expanded and a new building was built between 1912 and 1914 and is still in use by the company.

In 1923, James A. Chrestensen, who had been with the Company for a dozen years, became president and the beginning of the ”Old Hickory” line would begin. His son Robert F. Chrestensen would take over as president after his father retired in 1952.

To this day the Ontario Knife Company produces one of the most comprehensive, wide-ranging product lines on the market. They have built their reputation on a heritage of uncompromising craftsmanship, quality materials and components, and a steadfast commitment to its workforce.

Click here to view all the available Ontario Knife’s folding knives on Amazon.

All Ranger series knives were designed by knife smith Justin Gingrich who served ten years on active duty in such honored units as the 3rd Ranger Battalion, the 20th Special Forces Group, and the Ranger Training Brigade. Plus, Justin is also a Police Academy graduate and he served in Iraq with a civilian security firm in 2005 in addition to instructing private security contractors, U.S. soldiers, State Department employees, and civilians in the art of patrolling, demolitions, shooting, and Close Quarters Battle techniques.

Consequently, due to their focus on producing military knives, OKC has chosen to collaborate with Randall’s Adventure Training to produce a line of OKC/RAT folding knives that are designed by RAT but produced by OKC.