THE WORLD WAR I BOLO

  by Bernard Levine, (c)1993
   "Knife Lore" #62 [part], National Knife Magazine, September 1993

  One of the commonest government issue edged weapons on the 
collector market is the U.S. Army's Model 1917 bolo. The 
Model 1917 was the contractor-made version of the scarcer 
arsenal-made Model 1910 bolo. The wartime Model 1917 is 
simpler made and slightly rougher finished than the peacetime 
Model 1910, but its profile and important dimensions are 
identical. The only obvious difference is that the Model 1917 
lacks the scabbard latch which is present on the Model 1910. 
For all practical purposes, to soldiers in World War I, the 
two bolos were identical. 

  The Model 1910/1917 bolo was the fourth style of bolo 
adopted by the U.S. Army. The three earlier models, 
introduced in 1887, 1904, and 1909 were both significantly 
larger and more costly to make. In addition, the first two of 
those earlier bolos were of limited issue, being intended 
only for use by Hospital Corps troops. They used their bolos 
for clearing brush, and for cutting saplings to make 
emergency litters and shelters for sick or wounded troops. 
The Model 1904 Hospital Corps bolo remained in production 
through 1915. 

  By contrast the Model 1909 bolo was intended for use by all 
types of units, including infantry, artillery, engineers, and 
quartermaster troops. With its stout 14 inch blade, this bolo 
was big enough for constant use in the densest of jungles. 
The only trouble with this was that in the 1910s, few 
American troops had occasion to operate in jungles. In most 
North American or European environments, this long heavy 
knife was more a liability than an asset, especially to 
infantry troops who had to pack all their own gear -- hence, 
the introduction of the compact Model 1910 bolo, with its 10-
3/8 inch blade. 

  A further convenient innovation on the Model 1910, in 
addition to its compact size, was the addition of wire hooks 
on the scabbard for attachment to eyelets on the haversack or 
the cartridge belt. This bolo was the first U.S. Army knife 
that was so equipped. 

  I have not seen total production figures for the Model 1917 
bolo, but the numbers were probably in the hundreds of 
thousands. Peacetime production of the Model 1910 (about 
60,000) exceeded the wartime production of the bigger Model 
1909. So many Model 1917 bolos were made during 1917 and 1918 
that they were still available for issue in limited 
quantities throughout World War II, and unused surplus stocks 
of bolos and their sheaths continued to turn up in warehouses 
as late as the 1970s. 

  Model 1917 bolos are still so common that their collector 
value in excellent condition is less than it would probably 
cost to make them new today. Many is the time that I have had 
to disappoint a beginning collector, who is convinced that 
his newly discovered 76 year old treasure must be worth a 
small fortune. 


WEARING THE BOLO

  For all that we know about the production of the Model 1910 
and 1917 bolos, we have not known much about how they were 
used or carried. Long ago I saw a reference to army machine 
gunners using their bolos to clear brush and small trees out 
of the fields 
of fire in front of their emplacements, but that was all I knew. 

  Recently I found a copy  of a book called the Private's 
Manual by Col. Jas. A. Moss, U.S. Army. This was a 
commercially published book, written in 1915 and updated in 
1918. It incorporated material from a variety of War 
Department publications and orders, but it was not an 
official manual. 

  The second chapter of the Private's Manual details the 
soldier's equipment, and how it was to be packed and carried. 
Attached to his cartridge belt every man carried his canteen, 
his first aid packet, and his bayonet scabbard. However, when 
a man was wearing the haversack, the bayonet scabbard was 
supposed to be attached to it. Also attached either to the 
belt or to the haversack were five tools used frequently in 
the field, but only a few men in each platoon carried these 
tools. Ordinarily the intrenching shovel and the pick mattock 
were attached to the haversack, while the hand axe, the wire 
cutter, and the bolo were attached to the left side of the 
belt. 

  Three men in each squad (Nos. 1, 2, and 3 in the front 
rank) each carried an intrenching shovel, with its rigid T-
handle. The No. 2 man in the rear rank of each squad, as well 
as each musician, carried a wire cutter. 

  The other three tools were carried by one man in  every 
other squad. No. 1 man in the rear rank of even numbered 
squads carried a pick mattock with detachable handle. No. 3 
man in the rear rank of even numbered squads carried a hand 
axe. And No. 3 man in the rear rank of odd numbered squads 
carried a bolo. 

  Of course this allocation of one bolo to every two squads 
was the theoretical distribution to troops on maneuvers in 
1915, while the United States was still at peace. After we 
entered the war, in April 1917, I suspect that a lot more 
bolos were distributed to troops serving in France, while 
nearly everyone would have been issued intrenching shovels. 
In addition, soldiers destined for the front lines would also 
have been issued gas masks, not mentioned by Col. Moss, and 
many of them were eventually issued the new knuckle-duster 
trench knives, first introduced in 1917. 

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