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[[Image:Logo-Esterbrook.jpg|center|200px|Esterbrook Logo]]

[[Image:Logo-Esterbrook.svg|center|400px|Esterbrook Logo]]

[[Esterbrook]] was founded in 1856, but its fountain pen production is concentrated in the period between '40s and '50s. The company specialized in the manufacturing of cheap fountain pens, focusing in the mass market segment. Their pens had steel nibs and ordinary metal finishes. Despite the fact that [[Esterbrook]] pens were clearly economic models, they were produced with great care using cheap but good quality materials.  

[[Esterbrook]] was founded in [[1856]], but its fountain pen production is concentrated in the period between '40s and '50s. The company specialized in the manufacturing of cheap fountain pens, focusing in the mass market segment. Their pens had steel nibs and ordinary metal finishes. Despite the fact that [[Esterbrook]] pens were clearly economic models, they were produced with great care using cheap materials but with good quality manufacturing.  

The sales of economic models had a great success, including the ability to expand the market to areas hitherto not attained. The [[Esterbrook]] pens were extremely robust and functional and produced in a wide variety of patterns and colors. As happened with most of the other fountain pen manufacturers, the company had an inexorable decline when facing the competition from disposable ballpoint pens, ceasing operations in 1971. {{Infobox_Brand|Esterbrook}}

The sales of economic models had a great success, including the ability to expand the market to areas hitherto not attained. The [[Esterbrook]] pens were extremely robust and functional and produced in a wide variety of patterns and colors. As happened with most of the other fountain pen manufacturers, the company had an inexorable decline when facing the competition from disposable ballpoint pens, ceasing operations in 1971. The company rests, after the fusion with [[Venus]], were bought by [[Faber Castell]] in 1973.{{Infobox_Brand|Esterbrook}}{{BrandData|Founder=Richard Esterbrook|Date=1856|ProdDate=1933|Place=Camden, New Jersey|Country=US|Fullname=United States Steel Pen Manufacturing Company|Closing=1971}}

== History ==

== History ==

[[Image:1948-10-Esterbrook.jpg|thumb|A 1948 advertisement]]

[[Image:1948-10-Esterbrook.jpg|thumb|A 1948 advertisement]]

La [[Esterbrook]] venne fondata nel 1856 a Camden nel New Jersey, da ''Richard Esterbrook'', un quacquero originario della Cornovaglia, che era immigrato negli Stati Uniti. Questi era un negoziante di cancelleria, ed aveva assistito in Inghilterra al passaggio dalla piuma d'oca ai pennini in acciaio. Prevedendo una grande possibilità di espansione del mercato negli Stati Uniti assunse cinque artigiani inglesi (dalla ditta ''John Mitchell'' di Birmingham) e dette avvio alla produzione di pennini negli USA.  

[[Esterbrook]] was founded in [[1856]] in Camden in New Jersey, by ''Richard Esterbrook'', a Cornish Quaker, who was an immigrant in the United States. He was a stationery, and had assisted to the move from goose pen down to steel nibs. Foretelling a great opportunity in the United States nib market expansion he took five English craftsmen (by the ''John Mitchell'' firm of Birmingham) and then start producing steel nibs in the U.S.A.  

[[File:Esterbrook-J-model-Green-Open.jpg|left|thumb|100px|Una [[Esterbrook]] modello [[Esterbrook J|J]] ]]

[[File:Esterbrook-J-Green-Open.jpg|left|thumb|100px|An [[Esterbrook J]] model]]

L'azienda operò per i primi due anni con il nome di ''United States Steel Pen Manufacturing Company'', per diventare nel 1858 la ''Esterbrook Steel Pen Manufacturing Company''. Le attività ebbero un grande successo tanto che alla fine del 1900 essa era considerata, insieme alla ''Perry & Co.'' (più nota come ''Osmiroid'') il principale produttore di pennini del mondo. Nel 1896 l'azienda si lanciò sul mercato inglese

The company operated for the first two years under the name of ''United States Steel Pen Manufacturing Company''; in 1858 it become the ''Esterbrook Steel Pen Manufacturing Company''. The company activities were a great success so that at the end of 1900 [[Esterbrook]] was considered, along with ''[[Perry]] & Co.'' (better known later as ''Osmiroid''),  as the largest nib manufacturer of the world. In [[1896]] the company launched itself in the British market.

La prima penna stilografica venne introdotta all'incirca nel 1933<ref>questa è la data citata [http://www.billspens.com/BillsPens/esterbrook/esterbrook.htm qui].</ref> che corrisponde a quella del primo brevetto per i pennini intercambiabili. Nel 1935 l'azienda introdusse il modello [[Dollar Pen]] chiamato così per via del prezzo dello stesso, un dollaro.

The first fountain pen was introduced in [[1933]]<ref>this date is cited [http://www.billspens.com/BillsPens/esterbrook/esterbrook.htm here].</ref> corresponding to the first patent for interchangeable nibs. In [[1935]] the company introduced the  [[Dollar Pen]] model, called so for its price, just a dollar.

La caratteristica che ha reso la [[Esterbrook]] più famosa per le  sue penne è il gruppo pennino intercambiabile,<ref>per i quali disponeva dei brevetti {{Cite patent|US|1939753}} e {{Cite patent|US|1939753}} del 1933 e 1935, richiesti comunque rispettivamente nel 1928 e 1933.</ref> ed anche se non è stata la prima azienda ad aver introdotto questa caratteristica, dato che già la [[Eversharp]] la aveva realizzata con i suoi pennini [[Personal Point]]. A differenza della [[Eversharp]] però la [[Esterbrook]] usò questa caratteristica per consentire agli utenti di cambiare a piacere e con facilità il proprio pennino (aiutata anche dal fatto di usare pennini economici in acciaio).  

The feature that distinguished [[Esterbrook]] production was the interchangeable nib unit,<ref>this feature was protected by the patents {{Cite patent|US|1939753}} and {{Cite patent|US|1999177}} registered respectively in 1933 and 1935, but applied in 1928 and 1933.</ref> but it wasn't the first company offering this feature, that was already used by the [[Personal Point]] nibs made by [[Wahl Eversharp]]. Differently from [[Eversharp]], [[Esterbrook]] used the feature to consent to its clients to easily change their nib as they please, in any moment and not just when buying the pen, helped by the low price of its cheap steel nibs.  

Il modello più famoso prodotto dall'azienda è comunque il [[Esterbrook J|modello J]], introdotto dall'azienda nel 1943. (da finire)

The most famous model produced by the company is the [[Esterbrook J|J model]], introduced in [[1943]]. (to be completed)

[[File:Esterbrook-J-Color-Group.jpg|thumb|Un gruppo di [[Esterbrook J]] ]]

[[File:Esterbrook-J-Color-Group.jpg|thumb|An [[Esterbrook J]] set]]

Nel 1967 la [[Esterbrook]] venne assorbita  dalla ''Venus Pen and Pencil Corp.'', divendendo la ''Venus-Esterbrook'' ma il marchio divenne sempre meno significativo, fino alla sostanziale cessazione delle attività avvenuta nel 1971 (in corrispondenza dell'acquisizione della ''Venus-Esterbrook'' da parte del Berol Group).  

In [[1967]] [[Esterbrook]] merged with ''Venus Pen and Pencil Corp.'', becoming ''Venus-Esterbrook'' but the brand became less and less significant, up to the full closure in [[1971]], when ''Venus-Esterbrook'' become part of the ''Berol Group''. In [[1973]] the rests of the  ''Venus-Esterbrook''  were acquired by [[Faber Castell]].

Nel 1973 i resti della ''Venus-Esterbrook'' vennero acquisiti dalla [[Faber Castell]].

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{{BrandChrono|Esterbrook}}

| 1856 || nascita della [[Esterbrook]] come ''United States Steel Pen Manufacturing Company''

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| [[XX]] || 19XX || XX, ?

* [http://www.richardspens.com/ref/profiles/j.htm] An article on [[Esterbrook J|J model]].

 

==Note==

* [http://www.vintagepens.com/Esterbrook.shtml] Brand page on David Nishimura website.

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20141111173638/http://www.billspens.com:80/billspens/esterbrook/esterbrook.htm] Brand page on Bill Acker website.

* [http://hans.presto.tripod.com/nibs/esterbrook02.html] An article on the company's history.

==Notes==

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{{CategorizeBrand|U.S.A.}}

[[Category:U.S.A.]]