Arkansas toothpick

In modern terminology, the Arkansas toothpick is a heavy dagger with a 12-to-20-inch (30 to 51 cm) pointed, straight blade.

James Black, known for improving the Bowie knife,[2] is credited with inventing the Arkansas toothpick.

Americans were observed to use pocket knives to clean their teeth in the era, so the "Arkansas toothpick" term may predate the Bowie knife.

[3] Although many jurisdictions worldwide have knife legislation regulating the length of a blade or the dagger-like profile of the Arkansas toothpick that can be owned or carried, certain locales in the United States have legislation mentioning the "Arkansas toothpick" in particular.

These laws were passed in the late 1830s in Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia as an attempt to prevent dueling.