Just keep in mind any steel knives used by Native Americans were French and British supplied in the East and Spanish less so in the West as they were rightfully afraid of rebellion. So, most North American frontier knives were trade knives which took the Indian out of the stone age, and they had about zero to do with knife design.

And sorry, Eric, have seen that style mounting on too many knives, from Scandinavia to the Bronx, to have even a clue. Would assume it turns out to be a job specific agricultural or food processing knife, but we knew that already. I am thinking wood carving.