Dixon Ticonderoga

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The Dixon Ticonderoga Company (Template:IPAc-en) is an American manufacturer of office and art supplies based in Heathrow, Florida. A subsidiary of Italian-based F.I.L.A. SpA, the company offers a number of brands, with one of the most well-known being Ticonderoga: the yellow No. HB 2 pencil known for its distinctive green and yellow ferrule. Other brands include Dixon and Oriole pencils, Dixon Industrial products, Prang school and art supplies, and Lyra and Pacon art products.

History

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Joseph Dixon, founder

The company was formed by the merger of Joseph Dixon Crucible Company of New Jersey (1827)<ref name=wticon/> with Bryn Mawr Corporation of Pennsylvania, dating to 1795. The company was founded by Joseph Dixon and his son.<ref name=sentinel2013>Template:Cite news</ref> Dixon also acquired 200-year-old German-based manufacturer Lyra.<ref name=sentinel2013 /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The pencil's name originates in the graphite ore discovered in 1815 on Lead Mountain (sometimes Lead Hill) near Ticonderoga, New York.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2002, the company closed down its Sandusky, Ohio factory, shifting the manufacturing operations to Mexico. In 2005, the company was acquired by F.I.L.A., a manufacturer of school and art supplies based in Milan, Italy, and announced the closure of its main US factory in Versailles, Missouri. The company retains a distribution center in Georgia, where it makes limited numbers of pencils in order to claim status as a domestic producer,<ref name=wapo2018>Template:Cite news</ref> and a headquarters facility in Heathrow, Florida.<ref name=sentinel2013 />

A consultant and former director of business development for the Dixon Ticonderoga company has been Lee Corso (who is better known as a sports broadcaster on ESPN's College Gameday).<ref name=sentinel2013 /> According to USA Today, his on-air trademark is waving a pencil to punctuate his speech.<ref name="USATODAY">Template:Cite news</ref>

Ticonderoga pencil

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An assortment of pencils manufactured by the Dixon Ticonderoga Company

The classic Ticonderoga is a wood-cased graphite pencil. It is well known for having a characteristic yellow color, a green (originally brass) metallic ferrule, and a soft pink eraser. The pencil has a mild hexagonal shape that slows surface rolling. Its thickness is approximately 7mm, and its unsharpened length is 19 cm. The Ticonderoga was traditionally manufactured from Eastern red cedar, but it is now made from an unspecified American cedar.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The eponymous Ticonderoga model pencil is distributed by the Dixon Ticonderoga Company. The company, which was originally located in downtown Jersey City, New Jersey, was founded in the 19th century. In 1999, Dixon ceased US production of the Ticonderoga pencil, but it continues to own and operate facilities outside the US in Italy, France, Asia, Latin America and Germany.Template:Citation needed

Dixon Ticonderoga manufactures a variety of pencils, including the Classic, Black, Noir, Tri-Conderoga, Microban, Laddie, My First (formerly Beginners), SenseMatic, and colored pencils. The pencils are available in different grades: #1 (Extra Soft), #2 (Soft), #2½ (Medium), #3 (Hard), and #4 (Extra Hard).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>