Were Pencils Used by the Lewis and Clark Journal Writers?

This carpenters pencil is the oldest known pencil in existence. It was found in the roof of a 17th-century German house, and is part of the Faber-Castell private collection.  A.W. Faber-Castell Vertriebs GmbH. 

When we think of the Lewis and Clark journals, we imagine the writers working with quill pens and a small-batch of ink mixed from a dry powder. There’s no mention of pencils in the supply list of Meriwether Lewis.

But he did order two ounces of “gum-elastic” from the Gillaspy & Strong apothecary in Philadelphia when preparing his supplies. Also known as “India-rubber,” it was used as an eraser material for removing errors in pencil.

So it’s possible there were pencils in the Captains’ portable writing desks, even though they were not commonly used in the young United States. Early versions of graphic pencils first appeared in England in the 16th century, but the writing instrument that’s most similar to what we know today wasn’t created until about 1795, in France.

In 1812, William Munroe produced wood-cased lead pencils in Boston, Massachusetts. He and other U.S. pencil makers began manufacturing pencils with dried graphite paste, which was inferior to the English-, French-, or German-made pencils made from higher quality graphite.

Today, about two billion pencils in a variety of colors, sizes, and materials are made each year in the U.S.