One of my first truly nice pen purchases was a large Pick Exceptional pen in Mandarin Yellow. It still had the original price sticker on the barrell and was in near MINT condition. It writes like a dream. Buttery smooth nib. It has two inserts at each end of the pen, one white and one black, making it a truly distinctive looking pen. When I started looking for information on the Pick Pen Co. I found there was virtually NO information anywhere. I even emailed the Cincinnati Library to see if they had any information in their archives. I never received a reply from them. All I have been able to find out so far is that it was a division of the John Holland Pen Co. If anyone has information about the company I'd really appreciate hearing it. Thanks.

For John Holland Pen Co. History go to:


http://www.penbid.com/Auction/showarticle.asp?art_id=24

This was an article written by Michael Fultz and it pretty much covers what you might like to know to get started on the topic

Syd

That is a nice link Syd,

But it doesn't say anything about the Pick Pen Co. Are you familiar with this name?

I was just giving info on Holland, because that is what the person wanted to know about, I thought.

After looking further, it seems that contrary to the report that Pick was John Holland brand, that Pick was a separate manufacturer altogether. Pick Pens are mentioned as a "regiona"l manufacturer along with a picture in Paul Erano's latest book Page 145. It is also listed as a separate pen company in Schneider and Fischler's THE BOOK OF FOUNTAIN PENS AND PENCILS (1992) page 116.

Don't have any more time tonight, but a good web search may turn up more. And PCA may have something.
Syd

Thanks to all who have replied. I have searched the net extensively for info on the Pick Pen Co. and have come up with practically nothing. I have several of the Pick Pens now, including a miniature "Big Red". I thought you might like to see a picture of the pen I was talking about in the original post but cannot add a pic here. I have acquired a lot of wonderful pens (and some real dogs) since I started collecting some years ago, but I still count this mandarin Pick as one of the best and one of my favorites.

Pick, like numerous other high quality makers (Grieshaber, Betzler & Wilson, etc), is woefully under-researched. I've got a couple of Pick pens and recently added a Pick stylographic to my collection (I was quite surprised to find a Pick stylo). These pens are reasonably nice quality, and the company seems to have had a reasonably long run (certainly spanning from flat top HR to streamlined platics). Perhaps you can plow some virgin ground here and become the passionate collector who does groundbreaking work.

Dave

I bought a Pick "Exceptional" at an antiques show a very long time ago and used it as my daily writer for quite a while. It is a very large pen with a very small section, in black, but I don't know the material from which it was made. It has a red ring around the top of the cap, as I recall. It is nice to know there is interest in these pens.

Dear Flexi and others,
I have not given up on my search. I haven't had much success, but I'm sure there is some info in the Cincy library if I can ever get there to do some research. Like most, the rigors of daily life prevent me from pursuing my passions. There are some patents attributed to the Pick Pen Co., but I haven't researched them yet. I will certainly post any info I come up with. I'm determined to unravel this mystery one day.

Best regards,

Jerry

Hello Jerry,

I got this reference for an article on the Pick Pen Co history:

Pen World, Vol. 3 No. 2 - Winter 1989-90

Looks like a copy of the issue can be purchased.

Best regards

Carlos Flores

Carlos,
I cannot thank you enough for the link to the magazine. I have already ordered one and will anxiously await it's arrival. What a fantastic community this is!!!

I'll report here again after I receive the article and have had a chance to digest it.

Once again, THANK YOU!

Best regards,

Jerry

I received the article from Pen World. It was fascinating! Arthur Schoenberger started the company in 1920 at 2100 Reading Road in Cincinnati. The building is still there with the company name faintly visible on the side of the building. He knew nothing about fountain pens or how to make them. He named the company for his cousin Ed Pick, who loaned him the money to get started. He hired a man named Weidling who had worked for the Weidlich Pen company to set up the machinery and get the plant started. They produced pens there for 13 years. They produced high quality pens and marketed them by doing demonstrations in the client store windows. They would drive the pen into a block of balsa wood, removed it, and show that it still wrote well. Kind of flashy, but compared to today's commercials, rather tame. The company faltered only because of lack of sales experience. Arthur died in the 50's at the age of 84. The article is an interview with Arthur's son, Eckbert, who worked in the Pick plant from the age of 13 till it closed. It was a fascinating read and I thank Carlos for bringing it to my attention.

I have a beautiful mandarinish yellow Pick pen in my collection that I treasure. Finding out it's history makes it a more meaningful part of my collection. It still has the original sticker on it for $3.75. There are pictures of it on the Rambling Snail site.