I don't know where the 'Dog River Sword' term came from. What I have told you is what I heard from antique appraisers. I really wasn't knowledgable on the different 'brands' of those things. Now I've got to go back and try to see if I can rewatch the episode of American Pickers where they found one. The guy needed a Confederate sword for the museum in Richmond. He was delighted they brought him a "Dog River". He knew of them so I guess they had some sort of reputation even if they weren't made there.It's interesting that they are highly valued and said to be of good quality. Maybe they had some sort of after hours custom hot rod sword chop shop there during the war.
I know they get tired of hearing it but I continue to pound into the kids I talk to at school the need to understand the ground they are standing on so they can better grasp the history they are product of. Even the land the school is on is a lesson I give to 4th graders each year. They have no idea there was a cattle industry in Florida. When I bring in photo's of my GG and G Grandfathers and tell them they came out each spring to the very ground the school is on to round up the free range cattle and drive it to the stockyard in Pensacola they perk up. They can identify that from the westerns they've watched. I show them the photo's of my Aunt as a young girl, the daughter and granddaughter of those 'cattlemen' and they do ask questions. The school is named after her. They see the visual link of the land through the last 100 or more years even though the family did not own the land There is a tree in the front of the school that looks very much like a "Trail Tree". They like to hear about those. Much of that type of information is being lost or ignored.
Sounds like you've had a good lesson in your 'dirt' today. I'm kind of disappointed there's no sword factory though. Gotta research that now. I'm curious about why that term is used.
Pam