National Ballpoint Pen Day: A Brief History
– The Invention of the Ballpoint Pen: A Brief History –
Ballpoint pens are the world’s most commonly used pens today. Also known as a ‘Biro’, or ’Ball Pen’, the apparatus is dragged across a surface while releasing ink over a small rotating metal ball located at its point. Sounds simple right? Well, not so much. The historical process leading up to the transformation of the traditional fountain pen to the contemporary ballpoint pen was slow and gradual.
Prior to the development of the modern day pen, fountain pens were popularly used as primary writing instruments. Originally invented by Petrache Poenaru and modified by Lewis Waterman in 1884, the fountain pen contained an internal refillable ink reservoir from which ink was drawn. Due to uncontrollable smudging, inventors around the globe worked to find a new alternative to the leaky pen. An American banker by the name of John L. Loud was amongst the first to construct a lacking, but usable ballpoint pen designed to mark leather. Years later, a Hungarian Journalist by the name of Laszlo Biro re-invented and patented a ballpoint pen that could evenly disperse ink onto a page and last for years on end. This is the pen that we used today.
Sold out at nearly every store in the mid 1940’s, the ballpoint pen retailed for nearly $12.50 (almost $150 today) for a single pen. Claiming to be completely smear-proof and guaranteed to last at least two years without refilling, the highly-demanded, long-lasting, and dependable ballpoint pen was a major enticement for consumers worldwide. But, due to low-quality and faulty production the ballpoint pen fad nearly plummeted out of existence by the late 1940’s. Fortunately, the plunge was short-lived and by the late 1950’s and early 1960’s the ballpoint pen experienced resurgence. This occurred when a popular brand known as Parker Pens released the ‘Jotter’, which utilized a tungsten-carbide textured ball in its tip. Soon after the release, sales skyrocketed for many new brands, selling millions of ballpoint pens per year. The ballpoint pen has remained the world’s most famous writing tool. Laszlo Biro did not become wealthy off his invention, but the style of pen he fashioned still dominates the market today. Recognized by the general public as the standard for writing, many parts of the globe still refer to the ballpoint pen as a ‘Biro’. This is a tribute to inventor Laszlo Biro and the first commercial patent on the ballpoint pen!
Sources:
“Ballpoint Pen.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 07 June 2017. Web. 07 June 2017.
Keyser, Hannah. “The Origin Story of the Ballpoint Pen.” Www.mentalfloss.com. Web. 06 June 2017.
“How Ballpoint Pens Work.” 1 April 2000. HowStuffWorks.com. Web. 06 June 2017
