Does anyone here remember their first “Big Fat Pencil” and “Big Chief Tablet”, and how proud you were to graduate from coloring books?
History of Big Chief Tablet:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Chief_tablet
pencil history. I think I can remember a few pencils made out of red cedar and the smell:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pencil#Grading_and_classification
By the end of the 19th century over 240,000 pencils were used each day in the US. The favoured timber for pencils was Red Cedar as it was aromatic and did not splinter when sharpened. In the early 20th century supplies of Red Cedar were dwindling so that pencil manufacturers were forced to recycle the wood from cedar fences and barns to maintain supply.
One effect of this was that “during World War II rotary pencil sharpeners were outlawed in Britain because they wasted so much scarce lead and wood, and pencils had to be sharpened in the more conservative manner – with knives.”[33]
It was soon discovered that Incense cedar, when dyed and perfumed to resemble Red Cedar, was a suitable alternative and most pencils today are made from this timber which is grown in managed forests. Over 14 billion pencils are manufactured worldwide annually.[34] Less popular alternatives to cedar include basswood and alder.[33]