SHENANDOAH VALLEY KNIFE CLUB

Club Biography: 

The Shenandoah Valley Knife Club had its beginnings in Harrisonburg in 1989.  A local insurance man, Weldon Layman, ran an advertisement inviting others interested in knife collecting to meet with him to explore the idea of a knife collectors club in the greater Shenandoah Valley area of Virginia.  The first meeting was at Weldon’s home, and  there were five other collectors in attendance:  Wes Shrader, Jacob Jay Martin, Mike Walsh, Larry Gray and Glenwood Rubush.  These charter members  were all from the Harrisonburg area, and after the initial meeting, a new knife collector’s club came into existence:  The Shenandoah Valley Knife Collectors. 

Today, our club has approximately 75 members, many living far from Harrisonburg.  Our club has several members who are affiliated with two other clubs within the state: the Northern Virginia Knife Collectors, located in Falls Church, Virginia, and the Old Dominion Knife Collectors, located in Bedford, Virginia.  In addition,  we also have membership ties with the Mason-Dixon Knife Club, located in State Line, Pennsylvania.

Annual Knife Show:

Since its beginnings, the Shenandoah Valley Knife Collectors has existed primarily to promote the collecting of factory and custom made knives in the greater Shenandoah Valley and in the state of Virginia.  One of the earliest endeavors that has helped our club achieve this goal has been our annual knife show.

 The initial idea and encouragement for this was suggested by a former member,  Tom Legard, of Bedford, Virginia. Although he lived roughly 120 miles from Harrisonburg, Tom was an avid collector and pocket knife repairman.  He was a long-standing member of the Old Dominion Knife Collectors, and had dreamed of the opportunities that a successful knife show could offer in Virginia.  His enthusiasm was contagious, and others in the club rallied around the idea. Although Tom Legard passed away in July of 1991,  his dream was realized the next year 

 In April of 1992, our club held the 1^st Annual Greater Shenandoah Valley Knife Show, with approximately 100 tables of  factory and custom knives. This has been one of the crowning achievements of the club, and each year, the members look forward to the work necessary for the next year’s show.  2006 marks the 15^th year we have held this event, and it is now a 200 table, 2 ½ day show.  It is held in the main building of the Rockingham County Fairgrounds on Route 11 south of Harrisonburg, Virginia

Charitable Endeavors:

The spirit of giving back to the community from our successes has been long standing tradition in the Shenandoah Valley Knife Collectors. With the proceeds from the annual knife show, our club is proud that  each year  we can donate generously to several worthy organizations:  the Salvation Army, the Blue Ridge Food Bank,  Hunters for the Hungry,  the Isaac Walton League, and the National Knife and Tool Institute.  In addition, we have also  provided  aid during local or state disasters, or to  individuals in need, as  brought to the club’s attention.

Directions to Our Club Meetings:

Meetings are Held on the 3rd Tuesday of Every Month. The Christmas Banquet is on this Day, unless otherwise specified.

CLICK HERE FOR CLUB MEETING MAPS