The name "Carter's" has long been associated with one of the world's foremost producers of fine writing and printing inks as well as a full line of general office products such as glues, pastes, inkwells, ink eradicators, stamp pads and paints. Founded in Boston, Massachusetts by John W. Carter in 1858, The Carter's Ink Company would eventually add a line of high quality fountain pens held near and dear to all fountain pen collectors. These pens would be produced for only a short period but would exude quality of design and materials unmatched in their time.

Carter's packaging, advertising and products were on the cutting edge of technology at the time. Packaging and advertising was obviously their forte with such things as mirrored glass to ornate and colorful "point of sale" standup signs. There were also magnificent embossed metal wall signs with fully colored pen and ink related scenes. By far the most famous of all Carter's ephemera has to be their beautiful and highly collectible ink bottles. Their cathedral cobalt blue ink bottles are highly desired by bottle, advertising, and pen collectors alike and command prices un-heard of for ink and bottle related items. Tin signs have sold for as much as $3700 and ink bottles for as much as $500. The mirrored glass advertising is in a class by itself. Not only was their packaging unsurpassed but the use of tricky names for its products were the rule. Inks became "Carter's Inx." Carter's Ink Company paste was called "CICO" paste and of course there is the famous ink eraser, "Inky Racer." The latter came in a box featuring a silhouetted running native, and the inside top of the box was decorated with numerous similar figures. Other inks had such catchy names as "Ryto" and "Blu-Rex." Name recognition was clearly the aim of the Carter's advertising department and packaging and naming was their avenue.

Pen Manufacturing Begins

Carter's decided to get into that business at the height of fountain pen fashion and popularity, the mid-1920s. It is rumored that Carter's acquired the defunct Laughlin Pen Company patents, materials and some equipment to begin production. Again, advertising and cutting-edge product design would be the hallmarks of Carter's fountain pens. Slogans were the new rule. When pen manufacturing began in 1926, Carter's knew that its inks had made its reputation -and the company relied on ink to sell its pens! The famous slogan, "You Know the Ink," appeared in almost all of Carter's fountain pen advertisements. The company letterhead carried another slogan: "This letter signed with Carter fountain pen (sic)."

The pens themselves were beautifully designed from their elegant humped spring clips to their unique cantilevered filling levers. A well-designed lady's pen and pencil set came in a sharp matching celluloid case with a flip-top lid that served as a desk or table stand. The company also manufactured matching mechanical pencils in "propel, repel, and expel" models, according to a 1929 product catalog. Desk pen sets were made in both single and double pen sets with a variety of base materials, designs, and colors. Early desk sets featured oversized unusual tulip shaped hard rubber sockets with or without trim rings. Some of the bases had magnificent figurals added in bronze or onyx. Desk pens came in two sizes- No. 2 and No. 6. They were produced in most of the regular pocket pen colors and materials. Prices in 1929 ranged from $8.50 to an unbelievable $135!

Carter's top-of-the-line Pearltex models were made from real mother of pearl using a patented process. These pens and pencils came in flat top designs with hump clips or ladies models with ring tops. They came with multiple trim rings, a lifetime warranty, and featured a 14 karat "Carter Ink Pen" nib in sizes from No. 2 to No. 8. Beautiful iridescent pearl colors such as Rose Petal, Wave Green, Cerulean Blue, and Pearl White were manufactured. Prices in 1929 ranged from $8 to $12.

The next line was the Coralite range. These were flat top pens and pencils almost identical in design to the Pearltex but in the familiar tight marbled materials. The colors were once again quite impressive. Accor-ding to a product catalog, "they represent the present vogue in what's what." The colors were blue, green, Lacquer Red, red/black mottled, Turquoise Blue, and Squirrel Gray. The sizes and nibs were the same as for the Pearltex and 1929 prices ranged from $3.50 to $9.50.

The basic line consisted of black polished and red polished hard rubber pens with the same design and specifics as the others, priced in 1929 from $2.75 to $9.50.
Numerous design and trim changes were made through the years. Colored trim rings were added to the flat top models at the top of the caps. Also multiple trim rings appeared on caps at both top and bottom, some with colored inserts inside the bands. Nibs were either Carter's "Inx," "Superware" or just the "14 karat." Stub models appeared, featuring inset threaded barrels to keep cap diameter narrower. Later models had no trim rings and flat, not humped, clips.

Final Pen Production

To survive the Depression the company made cutbacks in pen models and production. Designs evolved into more rounded styles. The final Carter's models featured rounded cap and barrel end caps in black, set off with gold filled trim rings. Some variations appeared with tapered black flat-ended trim caps with no trim bands, and some cased ladies' sets appeared with rounded, painted metal end caps. These pens were offered in the Pearltex and Coralite colors as well as some solid pastel colors. The late models became very cheap with thinner materials and plating and flat clips, and many had no clip or barrel imprints whatsoever! The pens can be identified only by the imprinted nib and the shape.

The cash crunch, competition and slowing market took its toll and the final Carter's pens were produced around 1932. Knowing that ink and related office products had been its mainstay since 1858, Carter's abandoned pen manufacturing and trimmed back its product line. Today the company name still survives under parent company Dennison. The famous Carter's name still appears on stamp pads, carbon paper and a few other items.

Interesting Notes

There were combination pen/pencils manufactured by Carter's. These combos are now known in at least three different standard Carter's colors but, as yet, have not been found mentioned or listed in any Carter's catalogs or material. The huge bronze plaque from the original Carter's factory building in Boston was salvaged and I have photos of it reposing in a New England antique store! Carter's nibs were made in numerous point styles and the majority exhibit quite a bit of flexibility. It does not appear that the company tried to promote any one nib style over another and medium points appear to be the most commonly found. The unique large glass cube found embossed with just "Carter's" in script or embossed with Carter's and logos on all sides is never found with any top and there is great speculation as to what it was used for. Was it a point of sale ink container, was it used to hold some unknown container of ink, or was it a standard inkwell? The answer is: a standard inkwell! It had an unusual domed brass(?) cover and was obviously an inkwell - and I am quite sure it was not marketed but used as point of sale ink sampler. Carter's cathedral ink bottles are seldom found with their original labels. These beautiful labels printed in yellow, red and blue, if present, will significantly increase the price of the bottle.

Notes on Buying Pens

Carter's pens came in a variety of beautiful celluloids and all are very susceptible to discoloration and swelling at the lever and section (threads). This is obviously due in part to the thinner gauge stock used for barrels and caps. This thinner gauge plastic causes headaches for the repair person when removing sections because the plastic is very prone to giving way to cracks or distortion from light heat used to loosen stubborn sections. Nibs also seem to generally be of thinner stock gold and this probably accounts for their nice flexibility on the whole. Look for hairlines at the vent hole and where the nib is "squeezed" into the section by the feed. You may want to use a 10X magnifying glass as the lower nib cracks or "wrinkles" as they are sometimes referred to are hard to see with the naked eye. The beautiful humped spring loaded clips are another "horrid" beast to the collector. The nature of their construction leads them to break easily or in the very least become loose. The clips were made with a thin spring steel piece inserted in the back which then tucked into a groove between the inner cap and cap. This spring steel became brittle with use and corrosion and easily snapped - result: lost clip. With use, the small protrusion of spring steel in the cap became loose - result: loose clip or no tension and these clips are near impossible to adjust tension on the pen. An interesting note: the Carter's clip is one of the few clips that can be installed with the inner cap in the pen! If you know what you are doing, that is! The cantilevered pressure bar and lever were easily broken and commonly replaced with standard pressure bars. In my opinion this should not weigh heavily on valuation. Replacement levers are as functional as the originals and make no visible change in operation or appearance - of course it is always better to have the original lever setup.

In Closing

Carter's pens were produced for a very short time and in somewhat limited quantities. This can do nothing but make them a little harder to find especially in the higher states of preservation. A mint Carter's commands a mint price! They are beautiful yet simple in design. Historically the name is unsurpassed for ephemera. With collectors of bottles, advertising, and pens all competing for these items expect prices to continue to rise as supplies decrease. If you are a pen collector make sure you take a look at some of the Carter's ephemera for your collection, - if you don't, you'll be missing a lot!