c. 1921–1924
REMINGTON / UMC
UMC beneath block REMINGTON separates this from the later plain REMINGTON circle.
stamped · steel · Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States
Other maker marks
Remington knife tang stamps
Remington knife tang stamps include stamped “REMINGTON / UMC” on steel dated c. 1921–1924 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States.
- Active years
- 1920–1940
- Country
- United States
- City / region
- Bridgeport, Connecticut (original cutlery manufacture)
- Products
- Folding pocketknives, Bullet-pattern pocketknives, Fixed-blade knives and other cutlery, Later licensed commemorative knives
- Marks
- 5
Original Bridgeport knife manufacture, 1920–1940. Remington-branded licensed and commemorative knives resumed later; the annual Bullet series began in 1982. The original factory interval does not date every knife carrying this brand.
What to look for
- Photograph both sides of every blade tang. Keep the maker wording, UMC, country inscription and pattern number separate. Note script versus block lettering and whether a circle encloses the name.
- The pocketknife circle-stamp chart has several interwar designs, including UMC and country-lettering variants. Match the chart to the knife’s format and construction; fixed-blade script marks use a separate sequence.
- Compare a proposed early Bullet with its pattern, shield, handle material and construction. Later commemoratives deliberately reused historic branding. A year on the reverse tang or a dated box can be more informative than the name alone.
- MADISON N.C. USA around a cartridge belongs to the later New Tang Stamp Series. Keep its place-name inscription distinct from the factory location of original Bridgeport manufacture.
Marks & lettering
5 marks
Undated
REMINGTON / MADE IN / U.S.A.
Country words surround the block-name circle. This later example shows why this layout alone does not establish a prewar date.
stamped · steel
Undated
MADISON / Remington / N.C. USA
Madison and N.C. around the cartridge distinguish it from the earlier UMC circle.
stamped · steel
Undated
DUPONT
Oval DUPONT tang stamp accompanies the Remington blade etch; distinct from a Remington UMC circle.
stamped · steel
Undated
Remington
Script without a circle on a fixed blade; do not automatically apply a pocketknife circle-stamp chronology.
stamped · steel
About Remington knives
Remington entered pocketknife manufacture at Bridgeport, Connecticut, in 1920. The cutlery business gave the arms and ammunition company another use for its manufacturing capacity after the First World War. It offered folding knives in numerous patterns and handle materials, alongside other cutlery. The letters UMC in many early marks belong to the Remington corporate name associated with Union Metallic Cartridge.
The Bullet Knife line began in 1922 with the R1123 Jumbo Trapper. A cartridge-shaped shield set into the handle became its most recognisable feature. Pattern numbers beginning with R distinguished models; the maker stamp and the pattern number can appear on opposite blade tangs. DuPont gained control of Remington in 1933. In 1940 Remington sold its cutlery business to Pal, ending the original Bridgeport production period. Pal also assembled some knives from remaining Remington parts.
Remington returned to annual Bullet commemoratives in 1982, with Camillus producing the first revived R1123. Subsequent licensed makers included other American cutlery firms. These later knives reused historic pattern names and branding, so a Remington circle or bullet shield alone does not separate an original from a commemorative. Madison, North Carolina wording and an accompanying New Tang Stamp Series certificate identify a later branded series.
Also known as: Remington Cutlery · Remington UMC · Remington-UMC · Remington Bullet Knives · Remington Arms Company, Cutlery Works