Did you ever wonder where the iconic Number 2 pencils of our youth (and that of our children) come from? Well, the best answer is the General Pencil Company in Jersey City, New Jersey, one of the last remaining pencil factories in the United States. Photographer Christopher Payne courted the corporation’s favor, and was eventually granted unprecedented documentary access to the company’s production facilities. In honor of the kids (and teachers) returning to school, I thought it was a perfect subject for today.
“The pencil is so simple and ubiquitous that we take it for granted, but making one is a surprisingly complex process, and when I saw all the steps involved, many of which are done by hand, I knew it would make for a compelling visual narrative.”
– Christopher Payne
Although I don’t have the architecture and engineering background that Payne has, I am also fascinated by manufacturing and how things are made. If you enjoy such things, too, you’re going to love his work, which explores wildly divergent industries including fabric, vinyl records, paint, candy, and golf balls!
You can see all of Christopher Payne’s interesting documentary photographs on his website and on Instagram and Facebook. I also recommend you check out General Pencil Company’s surprisingly-artistic Instagram!
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My OBT 
September 10, 2021 at 7:50 am
Interesting, I have been using them all my life and never gave it a thought about how they are made
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September 10, 2021 at 6:53 pm
Same! It’s a cool process!
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September 10, 2021 at 7:53 am
What an interesting post. I liked learning about pencils. I use them every day, and I had no clue.
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September 10, 2021 at 6:53 pm
I’m always amazed by the things we take for granted!
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September 10, 2021 at 8:05 am
Yes..interesting.
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September 10, 2021 at 6:53 pm
So
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September 10, 2021 at 6:54 pm
That was supposed to read “xo”
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September 10, 2021 at 8:55 am
The smell of a freshly sharpened pencil…! Of course, New Jersey–my home state!
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September 10, 2021 at 6:57 pm
Many of my favorite things come from New Jersey!
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September 10, 2021 at 4:57 pm
Who knew? And how fascinating!
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September 10, 2021 at 6:58 pm
It’s fun stuff!
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September 10, 2021 at 5:22 pm
There used to be a TV show on how things were made. Always interesting just like todays post. Hal
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September 10, 2021 at 6:58 pm
I remember that. Loved it!
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