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Queen Cutlery Closes Its Doors After 90 Years in the Business

January 16, 2018

Queen Cutlery is closing the doors to its Titusville, PA facility after more than 90 years in the business.

The announcement came through the company’s official Facebook page and cited monetary issues as the reason for the closure:

Kenneth Daniels CEO and President of Queen Cutlery has announced effective January 10, 2018, that due to issues with cash flow, Queen Cutlery Company has been forced to cease all production and close its Titusville Pennsylvania facility, and furlough its employees while it goes through a period of reorganization.

It is unclear whether or not the closing will be a permanent one. But either way, it marks the end of 507 Chestnut Street’s run as the longest continually operating knife factory in the United States. Schatt & Morgan first opened the plant in 1902. It was then purchased by Queen in 1933. In the early seventies, Queen itself was bought by the Servotronics corporation and subsequently acquired by Kenneth Daniels in 2012.

In recent years Queen has produced knives under its own label, as well as Tuna Valley Cutlery and Schatt & Morgan, and for Northwoods Knives. One of their most recent projects was a series of old-style automatic knives, which they kicked off with the John Henry model last year under the Schatt & Morgan label. Like other traditional slipjoint manufactures, Queen knives enjoyed an avid fan base. Ryan Daniels told us last year that about 80% of their business came from dedicated collectors.

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Queen isn’t the first traditional knife maker to face hard times in recent years. Canal Street Cutlery closed its doors in 2015. Competition in the traditional knife market is fierce as leading knife companies tap into the traditional market with popular designs like the Benchmade Proper and the Spyderco Roadie. Even Cold Steel joined the fray with knives like the Lucky One.

Knife featured in image: Queen Curly Maple Tear Drop Jack

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