The 3rd Annual James Black’s Bowie Heritage Festival will be held on April 20, 2024, from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. in the City of Washington, Arkansas. The event, in partnership with the University of Arkansas Hope-Texarkana Foundation and Historic Washington State Park, aims to celebrate James Black, the bladesmith who created the first Bowie Knife for Jim Bowie in Washington. The festival will also promote a wide range of Arkansas heritage crafts and trades.
The festival will take place across the City of Washington, including the James Black School of Bladesmithing and Historic Trades, the W.P.A. Gymnasium, Washington Pavilion, the Old Town Square, and the midway area near the 1874 Hempstead County Courthouse.
The festival will welcome a lineup of celebrity guests, including Discovery Channel’s Naked and Afraid star and outdoor survivalist Melissa Miller (Melissa Backwoods), and History Channel’s Forged in Fire stars Jason Knight and Doug Marcaida. Several world-class bladesmiths will also attend and showcase their knives, sharing the stories behind each blade.
The festival will feature exhibits and workshops, period music, a knife show, and a knife cutting competition organized by “National Living Treasure” and Mastersmith Jerry Fisk and former ‘Forged in Fire’ champion Ricardo Vilar, both of Nashville, Arkansas. Lin Rhea, former resident Mastersmith at the Historic Arkansas Museum and Arkansas Living Treasure, will also exhibit and demonstrate his bladesmith skills at the festival. Knifemakers from nine states will attend to sell and showcase their work, and craft vendors will teach techniques of their trades. Other folk artisans will display and sell heritage crafts.
The festival will revolve around the story of James Black, who forged the Bowie Knife for Jim Bowie around 1830. Black’s version of the Bowie Knife was a long, comprehensive, and sharp blade that was strong yet flexible, topped with a coffin-shaped handle of black walnut embellished with silver studs. Jim Bowie was pleased with the knife, which became his fighting weapon used at the Alamo and in skirmishes along the way. Re-enactors will narrate the story of Jim Bowie’s travels and the importance of the Bowie Knife. Visitors can also learn how to forge a blade at the James Black School of Bladesmithing and Historic Trades.
Kids can learn about heritage crafts and take home a free wooden replica Bowie knife in the dedicated kids’ corner. Visitors can admire authentic James Black crafted knives and other antique Bowie knives hosted by Mark Zalesky of KNIFE Magazine. Mark will also host a “knife roadshow” for visitors, where he will evaluate the visitors’ knives and provide insights into their history.
The festival will also feature a live auction conducted by America’s Auctioneer, Myers Jackson. Visitors can bid on valuable items, and the funds raised will go towards a noble cause.
The festival is free to attend, and parking is available for $6.00. For more information, call 870-648-5084.