Original U.S. WWII 91st Infantry Division Rare Everitt Green Handle Knuckle Fighting Knife with Scabbard Carried by Bronze Star Recipient Sergeant Joseph F. Eak Sr., 363rd Infantry Regiment

Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is a lovely example of the rare U.S. WWII Everitt Knuckle fighting knife that features the desirable green painted handle, with the correct original scabbard. No reference indicates that anyone knows who “Everitt” was, or who the company that produced the knives was. Some have surmised that it was the location of manufacture, but due to the passage of time, most likely the true answer will never be known.

What is known is that these fighting knives were produced for use by US troops in the Pacific Theater of operations, and measure almost 12 inches in overall length. They feature a 5 inch long cast aluminum hilt, with four finger holes, which have small flat raised areas on the outside of each. The "palm" area of the grip is checkered, with a raised EVERITT marking. This is important to note, as most replicas of these have a stamped marking, and lack the proper texture. These knives came with either a black or green enamel paint on the handle, and this example has the less often seen green paint, although it is almost all gone. It retains roughly 25% of the paint. This example has an attached provenance tag reading:

WORLD WAR II KNIFE
CARRIED BY JOSEPH F. EAK, SR.,
DURING WORLD WAR II

From our research, we found this to be Sergeant Joseph Francis Eak Sr., who served with the 363rd Infantry Regiment, 91st Infantry Division, who was awarded the Bronze Star during World War II. We have included a printed photo of his grave marker.

The blade is a simple double-edged spear-point design, which measures about 7 inches long with thin central fullers. The knife is clearly intended for stabbing and only offered limited utility for the other duties that a combat knife might be called upon to deliver. The blades were usually painted with black enamel, and this example retains most of that black enamel finish with areas of loss around the edges. The blade itself does show signs of field use.

The correct scabbard for these knives are almost rarer than the knife itself, as they are often degraded or lost. This scabbard is absolutely correct, with the 6 staples on the throat, along with 10 round side rivets, and the metal plate on the BACK of the scabbard. The scabbard was painted black by the soldier.  The design is somewhat like the M6 leather scabbard, but definitely has some important differences, as can be seen. The scabbard is in good shape, however there is definitely evidence of moisture damage, and one side of the securing strap is broken off as shown.

A great chance to pick up a very nice example of a rare identified WWII Knuckle knife. Ready to add to your edged weapon collection!

Specifications:
Blade Length: 6 3/4"
Blade Style: Double Edged Dagger
Overall length: 11 3/4“
Guard: 4 3/4" long x 3 1/2" wide