Editing Esterbrook (section)

===The beginning===
[[File:Richard esterbrook portrait.jpg|thumb|left|130px|Richard Esterbrook, founder.]]
[[File:Esterbrook lincolnpen 1866.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The "[[Abraham Lincoln|Lincoln]] Pen", packaging of 1866.]]
[[File:Esterbrook ad1876.jpg|thumb|right|200px|1866 card featuring the 066 "Falcon Pen".]]
[[File:Esterbrook building 1920s.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Esterbrook Pens Co. plant stood at Cooper Street and Delaware Avenue in [[Camden, New Jersey]], c. 1920.]]
[[File:Esterbrook 356-357-358.jpg|thumb|right|170px|Esterbrook's 356, 357 and 358 art & drafting pens.]]

Richard Esterbrook (1812-1895 <ref name=whiteapple>[http://www.whiteapplemultimedia.com/history.html History of Esterbrook pens]</ref>) was a Cornish Quaker from England who saw an opportunity in the United States to manufacture steel pens. In 1856 he traveled to the US to set up shop as "The Steel Pen Manufacturing Company". In [[Established::1858]] he was able to establish himself as the sole pen manufacturer in the USA and he changed the company name to "The Esterbrook Steel Pen Mfg. Co.", with just 15 employees and settled down in Camden, New Jersey. At the time, two of the four pen companies located in the United States were situated in Camden. Besides Esterbrook, the first in the country, the C. Howard Hunt Pen Company at 7th and State streets produced pens, pencil sharpeners and allied products and employed 125 workers. At its height, the Esterbrook plant had 450 workers and produced 600,000 pens a day.<ref name=hanspresto>[http://hans.presto.tripod.com/nibs/esterbrook.html Esterbrook pens in Blam! calligraphy page]</ref>

There were no men in this country learned in the pen trade and no suitable machinery, so it was necessary to design and build all machines. Only fifteen people made up the first payroll, but the growth of the company was steady. The buildings were added to from time to time and in 1912 a five-story concrete building was erected nearly doubling the size of the plant. Automatic Machines replaced hand work, and the output greatly increased.