From the monthly archives:

February 2010

Newhaven has Competition for Parker Pen Archives

by TonyB on February 26, 2010

The town of Janesville, Wisconsin is speaking up about the future of the Parker Pen archives.

You might remember we mentioned last month that the iconic pen company was closing down its Newhaven manufacturing plant and shifting everything to France. Pen collector Tony Fischier, who runs ParkerCollector.com, has launched an online petition to keep the company’s extensive archives of pen designs and classic Parker writing instruments in Newhaven.

(If you’re a Parker buff, you really should read Fischier’s report on his visit to the Parker archives in June 2009.)

But it seems Janesville isn’t going to concede without making its own pitch for the materials. A retired police officer has started a letter-writing campaign to have at least part of the Parker Pen archives returned to the town and also asked the city council to pass a resolution requesting the same, according to the Janesville Gazette. Read More –>

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Conversations About Handwriting

by TonyB on February 24, 2010

Lots of good stuff for you this week:

• No wonder people in the Victorian era seemed to write so many letters. The New York Times has a very interesting article about how mail was delivered 12 times a day in London back then. You could receive a letter and respond to it the same day. Read More –>

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Why a Pen is a ‘Biro’ in the UK

February 22, 2010

For our American readers, a pen is usually just a pen. But those of you in the UK know that cheap ballpoints are often referred to as “biros.” If you’ve ever wondered about the reason for that, it’s this: The first ballpoint pen, utilizing a steel ball bearing held in place by a socket, was [...]

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The Uniball Pen Giveaway

February 19, 2010

If you’ve never tried the Uniball Jetstream RT retractable rollerball pen, this is the time to do it. The company is giving away a half-million FREE pens to anyone who asks. Unfortunately, the offer is only open to those living in the U.S., but if you have a mate in the States, maybe he can [...]

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Parker Pen Historian Michael Fultz Has Passed Away

February 19, 2010

We’re a little late on this, but we wanted to mention that L. Michael Fultz, the collector and historian who knew everything there was to know about Parker fountain pens, died Jan. 27 in Janesville, Wisc. He’d moved there, the original hometown of the Parker company, after a career in Illinois state government.

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Conversations About Handwriting

February 17, 2010

• One of the most beloved items of Maswood Khan’s childhood was a red fountain pen, he tells readers in an opinion piece for The Financial Express, waxing nostalgic about the days when he wrote and received handwritten letters.

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Skilcraft Pens: Writing Instruments of the US Govt

February 15, 2010

Anyone who’s ever been into a federal office, like the Post Office, has probably seen this ubiquitous American pen: The black Skilcraft retractable ballpoint stamped “U.S. Government.” It’s one of the most commonly used pens among federal employees and the military.

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Totally Random Pen Stuff

February 12, 2010

•The AP’s reporting some good news and some bad news about David H. Brooks, founder of the company that provided Interceptor body armor to the U.S. military. The good news is, David is a such a supporter of pen collecting that he spent US$ 350K on them, including gold and silver pens. The bad news [...]

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Notes by Hand or Keyboard?

February 10, 2010

We all have to take notes, whether for work, school or just daily life, so Lifehacker poses an excellent question to readers on that topic: Do you prefer to take notes with pen and paper or on a computer?

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How to Start Writing a Journal

February 8, 2010

If you’re a person who enjoys good pens – and really, who doesn’t? – then it’s a shame not to do as much writing as possible. A great way to do that: Start and maintain a journal.

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