General Pencil
Last verified: April 2026
Read our full verification: Is General Pencil Made in USA?Verification Summary
American Score
Manufacturing Location
Jersey City, NJ
Headquarters
Jersey City, NJ
Founded
1889
Products Verified
14 products
Evidence Breakdown
Factory Location Specificity
Specific factory city identified
Website Claim
Brand website explicitly claims Made in USA
Manufacturing History
20+ years of USA manufacturing
Known Overseas Production
No known overseas production
Verification Notes
All pencils and art supplies manufactured in Jersey City, NJ since 1889. Oldest pencil manufacturer in the USA. Uses responsibly harvested incense cedar wood.
Last verified: April 2026
General Pencil has been manufacturing products in Jersey City, NJ since 1889. We carry 14 verified American-made General Pencil products.
Heritage & History
General Pencil was founded in 1889 by Edward Weissenborn in Jersey City, New Jersey, entering a domestic pencil manufacturing industry that was then robust and geographically diverse. Over the following century, virtually every American pencil maker closed or moved production to lower-cost countries, leaving General Pencil as one of the only domestic survivors. Six generations of the Weissenborn family have led the company through every disruption the pencil industry has faced — the transition from incandescent to fluorescent lighting, the introduction of ballpoint pens, the digital age — and General Pencil has outlasted all of them.
The brand's artist-grade products — charcoal sticks, compressed charcoal, kneaded erasers, layout pencils — developed a devoted following in art schools and professional studios that no offshore competitor has displaced. General's Charcoal Pencils and Layout pencils became standard materials in fine arts curricula, recommended by instructors who value their consistent behavior and reliable quality. That professional endorsement created a customer base that values domestic manufacturing as a quality signal rather than merely a patriotic preference.
Made in Jersey City, New Jersey
General Pencil's factory is located in Jersey City, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from Manhattan, where the company has manufactured pencils and artist materials for over 135 years. The facility produces cedar-cased graphite pencils, charcoal sticks, and specialty artist materials using equipment and processes maintained and refined across six family generations.
Cedar wood for pencil casings — the traditional material that gives pencils their characteristic smell and workability — is sourced and processed at the Jersey City plant, where the full manufacturing sequence from raw lumber to finished pencil occurs. General Pencil's survival in a category almost entirely lost to offshore manufacturing reflects the compounding advantage of 135 years of process knowledge, loyal professional customers, and family ownership insulated from the quarterly earnings pressure that drove competitors to cut costs by moving production abroad.
Quick Picks
Frequently Asked Questions
Is General Pencil made in the USA?
Yes. General Pencil manufactures 14 verified products in Jersey City, NJ. General Pencil has been manufacturing cedar pencils and artist materials in Jersey City, New Jersey since 1889, making it one of the last American pencil manufacturers and a six-generation family business that has survived the near-total offshoring of the pencil industry.
Where is General Pencil manufactured?
General Pencil is headquartered in Jersey City, NJ. Manufacturing takes place in Jersey City, NJ.
What General Pencil products can I buy?
We carry 14 verified General Pencil products across Arts & Crafts. Every listing links directly to Amazon with verified American manufacturing.
When was General Pencil founded?
General Pencil was founded in 1889. General Pencil has been manufacturing cedar pencils and artist materials in Jersey City, New Jersey since 1889, making it one of the last American pencil manufacturers and a six-generation family business that has survived the near-total offshoring of the pencil industry.
Does General Pencil ship from Amazon?
Yes, all General Pencil products listed here are available on Amazon with free shipping for Prime members.