Tuesday, June 27, 2017

This One Is Important: Withers' Patent

This article has been edited and included in The Leadhead's Pencil Blog Volume 5; copies are available print on demand through Amazon here, and I offer an ebook version in pdf format at the Legendary Lead Company here.

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David Nishimura has turned up an example of one of the earliest American mechanical pencils - earlier even than a Lownds.  Henry Withers received a patent for his pen and pencil combination on March 19, 1834 - the fourth patent issued in the United States for a pencil.

David has also run down some of the history concerning the Withers patent pencil.  For those who are interested in early American writing instruments, his article is a must-read.

The link to David’s article:  http://vintagepensblog.blogspot.com/2017/06/withers-patent-x-patent-discovery.html.  He’s allowed me to repost a few of his pictures here:





1 comment:

Theresa - teabaker@earthlink.net said...

Is it possible for me to submit photos of a telescoping pencil for your comments? It looks old, found in a box from a relatives estate from many years ago. It is a dog head pendant, that turns into a propelling pencil. It appears to be made of silver with rubies for the eyes. I cannot find a makers mark on it. I apologize for making a post not directly related to the pencil at hand. Thank you!