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Timeline

Boker Timeline – A Legacy Forged in Steel

  • 1674 – The Boker family registered the tree as a trademark for handtools in Germany
  • 1829 – H. R. Boker Cutlery founded in Remscheid, Germany.
  • 1837 – Hermann Boker brings the brand to the US. Boker USA established in New York City.
  • 1861:1866- Boker Germany produced muskets and 18,000 sabers for Union Army 
  • 1869 – Heinr. Boker established in Solingen – the “City of Blades.”
  • 1870 – The legendary Tree Logo registered – a symbol of quality ever since.
  • 1890s – Boker becomes one of the top knife sellers in the US.
  • 1891: - US Tariff Act passed (History repeats itself!)
  • 1892: - Boker US merged with Valley Forge in Newark, NJ to produce knives in the US 
  • 1913: - “Tree Brand" and “Arbolito" registered 
  • 1914:1918 - all German knives were produced for the war effort in WW1
  • 1925 – The iconic 100-year-old chestnut tree is struck by lightning – its wood lives on in the Boker logo carving.
  • 1944 – British bombers destroy the Solingen facility – but Boker rises again from the ashes.
  • 1945 – End of WW2. Boker trademarks in the US are ceased by US government.
  • 1947 – Major John Boker buys back the rights and relaunches Boker USA.
  • 1950: - Boker USA begins importing from Solingen again 
  • 1956: - Boker purchases Schrade Knife Company to produce switchblades 
  • 1958: - Switchblade Act adopted causing the closure of the Schrade plant that made these types of knives 
  • 1983 – Boker Arbolito established in Buenos Aires, Argentina to serve the South American markets.
  • 1986 – Boker USA re-established in Denver, Colorado – marking a new era of growth.
  • 1999 – New modern Boker headquarters built in Solingen Germany, combining tradition with innovation.
  • 2006 – Boker resumes production of mastercrafted straight razors in Solingen.
  • 2019 – Boker celebrates its 150th Anniversary with the exclusive Curly Birch Anniversary Collection.
  • 2021 – Launch of the Historical Damascus Project, repurposing original Sherman WWII tank steel into knives with history in every blade.
  • 2025– US knife production re-established by Boker USA in Denver, CO – the first Boker knives made in the US since 1945