The pipe tomahawk’s history is involved and fascinating those interested in learning more may contact the gallery. It is in fact known that Butler made the tomahawk for John McClellan (1751–1775), a young farmer from the Juniata Valley who was commissioned for service in the Revolutionary War at the age of 24. Often the pipe stem was made of metal as well as the tomahawk/pipe bowl end. The quality of the blade, pipe and decoration excludes the possibility that the tomahawk itself was ever intended for the Indian trade and indicates it was made as a gift or custom order. Actually the combined pipe-tomahawk, or Pipe Hawk as they were referred to in the trade jargon of the Old West, was a popular item in trading with indian tribes of the Plains in the late 1700s to mid 1800s. Butler was a Pennsylvania gunsmith turned Revolutionary War general, revered hero, and friend to George Washington and General Lafayette.Īccording to the curators at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, the quillwork is representative of wrapping that occurred throughout the Plains and the Prairies, and is most likely the work of the Shawnee tribes with which Butler traded. It is the sole known example of the work of Richard Butler, an armorer and Indian trader based at Fort Pitt from 1765–1772. It traversed the Atlantic as a war trophy, and returned to America as a treasured relic and artifact. It bore witness to key events in the early years of American history, including the long march to the Battle of Quebec during the Revolutionary War. The extraordinary history of this example spans several centuries and great distances. Less than five percent of the surviving pipe tomahawks are marked or attributed. It is a uniquely American invention and among the prized possessions used in the Revolutionary War by American and English soldiers. The pipe tomahawk form is a true weapon of the frontier, combining a smoking pipe and a small ax.
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