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A Knife Maker was Born
At the age of five Ernest "Mooney" Warther found his first pocketknife and began
whittling. As a teenager he began carving in Walnut wood and bone. He became
frustrated with store-bought knives because they would not stay sharp, so he
began to design and make his own. Mooney Warther researched what steel to use
and created his own techniques for tempering and sharpening a steel blade that
would keep its sharp edge even while carving in hard materials like Walnut and
bone and later when carving ebony and ivory.
Early Years
 When tempering the steel blades Mooney thought that if this carving knife would
keep its edge and remain sharp while
carving ebony and ivory, it would certainly
make a great kitchen knife. Therefore, in
1902, at age 17, he crafted the first
kitchen knife for his mother and soon she
was showing her friends and neighbors.
The town folk were impressed and
Mooney received many orders, hence, the
family knife business was born. As the
word spread about how great the knives
were, so did his knife business. By 1923 Mooney quit working in the steel mill and
devoted his time to his hobby of carving and making kitchen knives as his livelihood.
A Son Follows his Father
 Ernest Mooney Warther taught the art of
knife making to his two sons, Tom and Dave (1940's). His
youngest son Dave started making knives
when he was 12, and when he returned
home from WWII at the age of 19 (1945),
he took over the E. Warther & Sons knife
business; this allowed Mooney more time
to spend on his hobby of carving.
Dave expanded the knife making business in
the 1950's by tapping into corporate gift
programs at companies like Ford, Hedrich
Blessing, and Timken. Beginning in the early
1940's Ernest Warther and his sons were using the name
and stamping the knives E. Warther & Sons but it was not until 1954, when Dave
officially incorporated the businessas E. Warther & Sons Inc.
By the early 1960's E. Warther & Sons grew beyond the confines of a one 10-'x15'
workshop and at the same time Mooney had so many carvings that a new museum
and knife shop was needed. In 1962 Dave built the museum on the main floor of a
40'x40' building with the E. Warther & Sons knife shop in the lower level.
A Grandson Follows his Father & Grandfather
 In the 1960's Dave's oldest son Dale began learning
the knife making business. Business continued to
grow so, when Dale graduated from college, he
returned to work in the family business making
knives along side his father.
Today
The Warther's are in their third and fourth generation
of knife makers. Dale, other grandchildren and
4th generation great grandchildren continue the
family business of producing outstanding kitchen
cutlery with the same techniques and fine
craftsmanship Mooney developed over 100
years ago.
Today, Warther kitchen cutlery is made by 3rd and
4th generation Warther's, using the same old
world craftsmanship passed down by Ernest "Mooney" Warther. Using the finest materials, the kitchen knives are designed and
crafted for comfort and durability. The kitchen knives are made from high carbon
tool steel which is stain resistant and are tempered to a Rockwell C 58-60. The
kitchen knives are polished to a convex grind, which can only be accomplished by
hand grinding. This assures the kitchen knives retain a razor-like edge with just a
light honing. The tooling design on the blade is done by hand and has been the
Warther trademark since 1907. The blade runs completely through the handle for
stability and balance. The handles are made of layers of birch and are riveted on
the blades.
Presidents & Dignitaries
 Warther knives have been made for many famous
people including: Ronald Reagan, Frank Lloyd
Wright, Gerald Ford, Nelson Mandela, George
Bush Sr., George W. Bush Jr., Perry Como, George (Senator) and Janet Voinovich,
Ted (Governor) and Frances Strickland, and Condoleezza Rice (Secretary of State).
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