Civil War Soldier’s Combination Spoon and Fork Folding utensil, marked “ARMY KNIFE / UNION”

This is another nice piece being offered, it is a Civil War Combination Spoon/Fork Eating Utensil. It measures 4 ¾” x 1 3/4” in the closed position. The spoon is brass, and the fork is iron. Marked on the base of the fork is “ARMY KNIFE / UNION”. Most of these utensils were unmarked, so it is rare to have one that is.

There are numerous examples of this utensil, or parts of it in “Civil War Artifacts – A Guide for the Historian”, by Howard Crouch, “Excavated Artifacts from Battlefields and Campsites of the Civil War”, by Stanley Phillips, and in The Civil War Collectors Encyclopedia, by Francis Lord, etc.

Lord states “Among the many devices to catch the money of the soldiers, a few were really valuable. One of these was an ingenious combination of knife, fork, and spoon which when not in use, could be folded up into small compass and carried in the haversack or pocket”.

I have examples of these eating utensils in my books “Battle of Gettysburg – The Relics, Artifacts and Souvenirs” and “The Civil War Soldier – His Personal Items”. They are also in the Gettysburg National Museum (see pictures). Some of these utensils had knives, but I never seen any with a knife attached. This is a very nice piece, still tight, and easily opens and closes as designed. It would go great with a display of a soldier’s personal effects.