Esterbrook Develops an International Market

During the 1880s, our steel pens reached customers well beyond the United States. Contemporary accounts from the period record Esterbrook pens being sold in Canada, England, Germany, Cuba and South America. By 1890, a Camden industrial review described the company's products as being distributed across the American continent and in overseas markets, including Britain and Germany. USGenWebSites Manufacturing remained centred at the works in Camden, New Jersey, while New York served as the principal distribution centre. Our 1883 trade catalogue listed the company's offices at 26 John Street, New York, alongside the Camden works. The catalogue was intended for the stationery trade and advertised Esterbrook pens as available through dealers, reflecting the distribution network supporting the company's expanding market. ©The Esterbrook Project The product range was extensive by this period. The illustrated 1883 catalogue presented numerous numbered and named steel nibs in different shapes, points and finishes, together with penholders. By the middle of the decade, a history of Camden County reported that the factory was making approximately 400 styles of steel pens, compared with ten varieties when the business began. This breadth allowed Esterbrook to supply pens suited to different writing requirements and commercial markets