A huge chestnut tree, which in the 17th century outgrew the small artisan factory of the Böker family in Remscheid, is the oldest fact about the Böker name that can be traced back. Böker tools were clearly successful, 100 years later they were among the leading products in Germany and neighboring countries.

Due to the growing demand in the turbulent political times, Hermann and Robert Böker decided to start the production of sabers in 1829. From the account books of September 1830, they already speak of a weekly production of 2,000 pieces, made by 64 forgers, 47 grinders and a large number of unskilled workers. With a growing number of tools and cutlery and large global sales opportunities, the family saw the need to divide tasks to make the most of their interests. Hermann Böker therefore emigrated and founded the company H. Boker & Co. in New York. The young Robert Böker founded his company in Canada and later established a branch in Mexico in 1865. Today, it is still the leader in its home market under the name Casa Boker.

Heinrich Böker, a cousin, only crossed the Wupper, went to Solingen, where at that time the German cutlery industry was growing by leaps and bounds. Together with Hermann Heuser, a well-known manufacturer of high-end products, he founded Heinr. Böker & Co.

The Bökers in Remscheid and their cousins ​​abroad have shown great interest and need high quality razors, scissors and pocket knives from the new Heinrich company. They had to easily label their products for overseas markets because many customers and consumers had problems with the German name Böker – in addition to widespread illiteracy. Heinrich Böker chose a huge, 200-year-old chestnut tree, capturing the successful Remscheider Handwerkzeug-Fabrik of the Böker family. This trademark belonged to Remscheider with a second logo, an arrow. One of the few valuable documents that survived complete destruction in World War II is a Böker, Remscheid, advertisement from 1874 showing both trademarks.

There has always been an extremely friendly relationship between the two Böker companies. So Heinrich could take the tree marker, Boker’s tree, across the river to Solingen – without a big fight or money check. Since then, no Böker product has left the Solingen plant without this seal of quality. The old chestnut tree was struck in 1925, after more than 100 years of being struck by lightning. As a reminder of the large chestnut tree that has become a symbol of quality pocket knives from Solingen, the artist carved the Böker logo from the wood of the original tree. Today, the management office at Böker Baumwerk Solingen is decorated with this work of art.

As early as 1900, the American market was losing most of Böker’s production. H. Boker & Co. in New York she was very focused on cutlery from Solingen. Pocket knives soon surpassed scissors, razors and cutlery in importance. Demand grew even faster than Solinger’s device, so Americans in New York began making pocket knives. Since the tree brand was already well established and the Böker international group had an excellent relationship with each other, it was not difficult to obtain the Solingen family’s permission to use the building monument for American products as well. Since then, there have been two distinct lines of Böker knives on the American market, the same trademark, even sometimes the same product numbers, one made in the USA and one in Solingen. Only the hallmark ensured clarity, once Boker USA and once H. Boker Improved Solingen Cutlery.

During World War II, the contact was destroyed. The Solingen factory burned down completely. No machine, no tools, no catalog material, no patterns survived. A few of the originals from the past that we have today survived the war in private homes and were made available. The company lost one of its most valuable assets: the trademark registration for the US market was seized by US law. John Boker Jr. acquired it in New York to secure it for the distribution of American and German products. Soon after the war, new life came to the destroyed factory. Any loyal skilled workers who survived the war returned and helped restore buildings and production and slowly return to a high standard of quality.