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Category: History

Nibby Sunday – Dorn / College fountain pen factory

Nibby Sunday – Dorn / College fountain pen factory

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In December 1949, the newpaper Dagbladet announced that a Norwegian fountain pen factory would finally be established, and that it would be located in Ski. Local newspaper Østlandet’s Blad contradicted this rumour. They could confirm that a factory building was to be set up according to the New Deal principle, where several small businesses rented in the same building, but they had not heard anything about a fountain pen factory. A few months later, on 12 April 1950, they could,…

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Nibby Sunday – A Beloved Child Has Many Names

Nibby Sunday – A Beloved Child Has Many Names

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This post was originally published in Norwegian at pennenermektigere.no on April 19, 2020. Fountain pen, reservoir pen, stylo plume, stilografica, self-filling pen. Fountain pens are called many things in different languages, and etymologically some of these terms have very different origins. In this post, we take a closer look at the different words used for fountain pens around the world. The Italians call fountain pens “penna stilografica“. Elsewhere in the world, however, a stylograph is often described as a pen where the tip is a…

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Nibby Sunday – The five Norwegian pencil factories that was NOT owned by two brothers from Senja

Nibby Sunday – The five Norwegian pencil factories that was NOT owned by two brothers from Senja

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Over the years, there have been several attempts to start up pencil production here in Norway. The most famous examples are Den Norske Blyantfabrikk and Oslo Blyantfabrikk, which I wrote a comprehensive article about in May 2022 (published in English in August 2023). In my research about the two Senja brothers who each started a pencil factory, I also found references to several other Norwegian pencil factories. In this article, I will share what I’ve been able to find about these lesser-known factories. Several…

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Nibby Sunday – “There was buoyancy in him” – The Story of Eberhard Bredesen Oppi and The Norwegian Fountain Pen Factory

Nibby Sunday – “There was buoyancy in him” – The Story of Eberhard Bredesen Oppi and The Norwegian Fountain Pen Factory

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In the spring of 2018, I inherited a pair of Pan pens, and started looking for information about this Norwegian fountain pen brand. At first it was difficult to find any reliable information, but as I managed to uncover little hints here and there, those hints could be used to dig deeper. I have written about Pan and Eberhard Bredesen Oppi several times in the past, and the most recent example up until now is an article in Norwegian from May 2020. Since…

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Nibby Sunday – Milton Reynolds – The Ballpoint King

Nibby Sunday – Milton Reynolds – The Ballpoint King

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This article was originally published in Norwegian at Pennen er mektigere on May 2, 2021. When you search in old Norwegian newspaper archives for the name “Milton Reynolds”, you find a lot of articles that mention two specific events in particular. One happened in 1947, when he flew around the world with his plane “The Reynolds Bombshell” in 78 hours and 55 minutes, thereby setting a new record for circumnavigating the world. The other case that was widely reported in Norwegian newspapers…

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The two brothers who started a pencil factory each

The two brothers who started a pencil factory each

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This article was originally published in Norwegian at Pennen er mektigere, on May 8, 2022. In this article you will read about fish theft, arson, tax and insurance fraud. It’s about the demolition of a district in the capital, and about being on the wrong side in a war. We will meet a non-commissioned officer, teacher, organist, writer, merchant and factory owner. Yes, and an opera singer! And we will hear about a couple of brothers from Senja who moved to Oslo and each…

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